THE  LIFE  AND  TIMES 
OF  JESUS 

FREDERICK  C.  GRAN  I 


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WEEK-DAY  SCHOOL  SERIES  GEORGE  HERBERT  BETTS,  Editor 


THE  LIFE  AND  TIMES 
OF  JESUS  __ 


By        y 

FREDERICK  C.  GRANT 


THE  ABINGDON  PRESS 

NEW   YORK  CINCINNATI 


CONTENTS 

CHAPTER  PACE 

I.     The  Land  Where  Jesus  Lived 9 

IL     The  Birth  of  Jesus  i6 

IIL     Jesus'  Home  in  Nazareth 24 

IV.    A  Visit  to  Jerusalem 7,1, 

V.    John,  the  Son  of  Zacharias 41 

VI.     The  Baptism  of  Jesus 48 

VII.    In  the  Wilderness 54 

VIII.     Beginning  His  Ministry 60 

IX.     A  Day  in  Capernaum 66 

X.     Healing  the  Sick  72 

XI.     The  Call  of  the  Disciples 77 

XII.     Keeping  the  Sabbath 84 

XIII.  The   Opposition  of   the  Scribes   and 

Pharisees 91 

XIV.  Seeking  the  Lost 97 

XV.     The  Sermon  on  the  Mount 105 

XVI.     Jesus'  Teaching  and  the  Law 112 

XVII.     Prayer  and  the  Lord's  Prayer 120 

XVIII.     Trust  in  Our  Heavenly  Father 127 

XIX.     The  Two  Houses 132 

XX.    A  Visit  to  Nazareth  137 

XXI.    A  Message  from  John 144 

XXII.     Teaching  by  Parables 150 

XXIII.  The  Disciples'  Faith  in  Jesus 156 

XXIV.  Alone  With  the  Twelve 163 

XXV     Journeying  to  Jerusalem 169 


6  CONTENTS 

CHAPTER  PAGE 

XXVI.     In  JuDiEA 175 

XXVII.     Entering  Jerusalem 182 

XXVIII.     The  Plot  Against  Jesus 187 

XXIX.     The  Last  Days  in  Jerusalem 193 

XXX.  Jesus  in  the  Hands  of  the  Priests  ...  201 

•  XXXI.     The  Crucifixion 208 

XXXII.     The  Resurrection 215 


LIST  OF  ILLUSTRATIONS 

Map Frontispiece 

FACING   PAGE 

Road  from  Jerusalem  to  Bethlehem i8 

Nazareth 24 

Great  Wall  of  Jerusalem 36 

The  Temptation  in  the  Wilderness 54 

Bethany 89 

Mount  of  Olives 127 

Jerusalem  in  the  Time  of  Jesus 183 

The  Temple  in  the  Time  of  Jesus 193 


HOW  HE  CAME 

When    the    golden    evening    gathered    on    the    shore    of 

Galilee, 
When  the  fishing  boats  lay  quiet  by  the  sea. 
Long  ago   the   people  wondered,  tho'  no  sign  was   in   the 

sky. 
For  the  glory  of  the  Lord  was  passing  by. 

Not  in  robes  of  purple  splendor,  not  in  silken  softness 

shod. 
But  m  raiment  w^orn  with  travel  came  their  God, 
And    the   people   knew  His   presence   by  the   heart    that 

ceased  to  sigh 
When  the  glory  of  the  Lord  was  passing  by. 

For  He   healed   their   sick   at   even,    and  He    cured   the 

leper's  sore. 
And  sinful  men  and  women  sinned  no  more. 
And    the    w^orld    grew^    mirthful-hearted,    and    forgot    its 

misery 
When  the  glory  of  the  Lord  was  passing  by. 

Not  m  robes  of  purple  splendor,  but  in  lives  that  do  His 

will. 
In  patient  acts  of  kindness  He  comes  still ; 
And   the   people  cry  w^ith  wonder,  tho     no  sign   is   in   the 

sky. 
That  the  glory  of  the  Lord  is  passing  by. 

W.  J.  Dawson. 

By  sermlsslen  of  the  author.    From  The  Empire  0/  Lave,  published  by  Fleming  H.  Revell  Company. 


CHAPTER  I 
THE  LAND  WHERE  JESUS  LIVED 

The  country  in  which  Jesus  lived,  Palestine,  is  one  of 
the  smallest  in  the  world.  It  is  smaller  than  Belgium 
or  the  Netherlands;  it  is  only  a  little  larger  than  V'er- 
mont,  less  than  one  fourth  the  size  of  Illinois,  and  only 
one  tenth  the  size  of  Colorado. 

From  the  Syrian  border  on  the  north  to  the  desert  of 
Idumea  on  the  south  is  only  140  miles.  From  the  Jor- 
dan River  to  the  Mediterranean  coast  is  only  50  miles. 
The  Jordan  itself,  from  the  outlet  of  the  Lake  of  Galilee 
to  the  Dead  Sea  into  which  it  flows,  is  only  65  miles 
long.  As  the  crow  flies,  it  is  only  70  miles  from  Naz- 
areth to  Jerusalem — an  aviator  can  cover  this  distance 
in  half  an  hour. 

PHYSICAL   FEATURES 

Palestine  is  a  beautiful  land,  hilly  and  picturesque. 
Except  along  the  seacoast  and  in  the  Plain  of  Esdraelon, 
one  cannot  travel  many  miles  in  any  direction  without 
losing  sight  of  his  starting-place,  unless  he  climbs  a 
high  hill  to  look  back. 

Judaea  and  Samaria. — Down  the  middle  of  the  coun- 
try, north  and  south,  lies  a  high  and  rugged  plateau. 
Thus  if  you  wish  to  travel  eastward  from  Joppa,  on  the 
Mediterranean  coast  (see  the  map),  you  must  first  cross 
the  maritime  plain,  about  twelve  miles  wide,  and  then 
begin  to  ascend  the  foothills  of  the  central  range. 

Ten  miles  further  the  real  "hill-country"  is  reached. 
This  is  the  highest  land  in  central  Palestine,  and  is 
twelve  or  fifteen  miles  across.     On  its  eastern  side  lies 


lo  THE  LIFE  AND  TIMES  OF  JESUS 

the  city  of  Jerusalem.  Beyond  this  begins  the  steep 
descent  to  the  Jordan  Valley,  which  is  about  fifteen 
miles  across  and  over  a  thousand  feet  below  sea-level. 
On  the  opposite  side  rise  the  cliffs  and  hills  of  eastern 
Palestine;  and  ten  miles  beyond  these  hes  the  desert, 
stretching  away  for  hundreds  of  miles  to  the  east. 

Galilee. — But  Galilee,  where  Jesus  grew  up  and 
spent  most  of  his  ministry,  is  less  rugged  than  Judaea 
and  Samaria,  and  although  smaller  in  size  it  supported 
a  much  larger  population.  The  highland  range  is 
broken  in  southern  Galilee  by  the  fertile  Plain  of  Es- 
draelon.  This  lies  northwest  and  southeast,  and  joins 
the  Mediterranean  seacoast,  just  north  of  Mount  Car- 
mel,  with  the  upper  end  of  the  Jordan  Valley,  just 
south  of  the  Lake  of  Galilee.  (See  if  you  can  find  it  on 
the  map,  though  it  is  not  named  there.) 

Looking  north  from  the  middle  of  this  plain,  you 
would  see  the  hills  of  Lower  Galilee — and  among  them 
the  hill  of  Nazareth — rising  gently  to  the  mountain 
foothills  of  Upper  Galilee;  back  of  these  stands  the 
mountain  range  of  Lebanon  in  Syria,  with  snow- 
capped Hermon  rising  majestically  far  away  in  the 
northeast. 

To  the  east  and  north  lies  the  Lake  of  GaHlee,  shaped 
like  a  harp,  its  eastern  shores  girded  by  steep  chffs,  but 
bordered  on  the  north  and  west  by  the  lovely  Plain  of 
Gennesaret.  In  this  plain  were  the  cities  of  Caper- 
naum, Bethsaida,  Chorazin,  and  Magdala,  where  Jesus 
spent  the  greater  part  of  his  ministry. 

Rivers. — Rivers  and  streams  abound  in  Palcstinfr, 
though  many  of  them  are  filled  only  in  the  rainy  season.' 
Springs  are  common,  fed  underground  by  the  melting 
snow  on  the  northern  mountains. 

Through  the  Plain  of  Esdraelon  flows  the  river  Kishon, 


THE  LAND  WHERE  JESUS  LIVED  ii 

famous  in  ancient  history,  and  into  the  Jordan,  the  Dead 
Sea,  and  the  Lake  of  Galilee  flow  tributaries  from  all 
side's.  The  source  of  the  Jordan  is  found  in  the  Lebanon 
Valley  north  of  Mount  Hermon.  Flowing  south  and 
westward  it  spreads  out  to  form  a  marshy  little  lake, 
"the  Waters  of  Merom,"  and  then  flows  on  down  into 
the  Lake  of  Galilee,  whose  surface  is  over  six  hundred 
feet  below  sea-level.  Leaving  Gahlee,  it  winds  rapidly 
down  through  the  Jordan  Valley  to  the  Dead  Sea— 
which  has  no  outlet  and  is  so  salty  no  fish  can  live  in  it. 

INDUSTRIES 

Although  Palestine  is  small  in  area  and  broken  by 
hills  and  valleys,  it  was  once  a  very  fertile  land,  and  in 
it  lived  over  a  miUion  people.  We  must  not  judge  the 
country  as  it  was  in  Jesus'  time  by  what  travelers  see 
there  to-day.  Then  it  was  one  of  the  most  fruitful  and 
prosperous  lands  in  the  world;  especially  is  this  true  of 
Galilee,  Jesus'  own  country. 

Products  of  the  soil.~Its  climate  was  warm  and 
sunny,  like  the  island  of  Sicily  or  southern  Italy.  Or- 
chards of  figs  and  olives,  vineyards,  palm  groves,  gar- 
dens of  pomegranates  and  cucumbers,  citron  and  melons, 
lettuce  and  mustard,  fields  of  flax  and  barley  and  millet 
covered  the  hillsides.  It  is  said  that  grapes  and  olives 
ripened  the  year  round,  save  for  two  months  in  winter. 
And  the  rabbis  explained  that  the  fruits  of  Galilee  were 
not  taken  up  to  Jerusalem  lest  people  should  visit  the 
holy  city  in  order  to  enjoy  such  delicacies,  instead  of  to 
observe  the  sacred  festivals! 

Flowers  grew  beside  every  winding  road  through  the 
hills— flags  and  lilies,  hyacinths,  tuUps,  anemones,  roses 
and  oleanders  and  wild  gourds.  In  the  springtime  the 
fields  looked  like  billowy  seas  of  green  and  white  and  gold. 


13  THE  LIFE  AND  TIMES  OF  JESUS 

On  the  mountains  of  Carmel  and  Lebanon  grew  forests 
of  oak,  cedar,  and  walnut. 

The  fishing  industry. — Fish  were  found  in  abund- 
ance in  the  Lake  of  Galilee,  and  in  the  marshy  valley- 
bottoms  and  the  streams.  Fish-pickhng  was  one  of  the 
great  industries  of  the  country,  and  fish  of  Tarichea 
were  shipped  to  Rome  and  Antioch  and  Alexandria. 

The  market  place. — In  the  markets  of  GaHlee  were 
sold  fruits  and  vegetables,  dates  and  figs,  olive  oil,  eggs, 
grain  (which  each  family  ground  for  itself  in  making 
bread,  just  as  most  people  still  grind  their  own  coffee), 
spices  and  salt  and  fish.  There  were  also  household 
utensils  and  furniture,  lamps  and  tables,  and  children's 
toys;  coarse- woven  linen  and  wool  cloth;  and  besides 
all  these,  many  strange  and  wonderful  things  brought 
in  from  Egypt  and  Tyre  and  the  lands  beyond  the  sea. 

A  busy  people. — In  the  south,  on  the  rocky  hillsides 
of  Samaria  and  Judaea,  lonely  shepherds  watched  their 
flocks,  guarding  them  against  wolves  and  robbers;  and 
in  the  country  east  of  the  Jordan  great  herds  of  cattle 
grazed.  But  in  Galilee  farmers  tilled  the  rich  soil  and 
harvested  their  abundant  crops,  fishermen  dragged  the 
lake  with  their  nets,  people  came  and  went,  busy  and 
happy  and  prosperous. 

Scores  of  towns  and  villages  were  scattered  over  the 
hills  and  about  the  lake.  To-day  most  of  these  have 
disappeared,  and  the  land  is  rocky  and  barren,  like 
Judaea.  But  in  Jesus'  time  there  must  have  been  300,- 
000  people  living  in  GaHlee — ten  times  as  many  as  live 
there  now. 

Travel. — Roads  crossed  the  land  in  all  directions. 
Among  them  was  the  oldest  road  in  the  world,  from 
Babylonia  to  Egypt.  It  passed  through  Damascus, 
across  Galilee  to  the  pass  south  of  Mount  Carmel,  then 


THE  LAND  WHERE  JESUS  LIVED  13 

down  along  the  seacoast  to  the  land  of  the  Nile.  From 
the  earliest  times,  before  history  began,  caravans  trav- 
eled this  road,  laden  with  fruit  and  timber,  baskets  of 
figs  and  dates,  gold  and  copper  and  precious  stones, 
wheat  and  rye  and  barley,  flax  and  wool,  dyes  and  pre- 
served fish.  And  down  this  road  had  come  in  ancient 
times  the  armies  of  Assyria  and  Persia  and  Babylon. 

Another  road  passed  from  Ptolemais  up  through  the 
Plain  of  Esdraelon  into  the  hill  country  of  Samaria  and 
Judaea — and  along  this  road,  in  Jesus'  time,  traveled 
the  soldiers  of  Rome  as  they  left  ship  at  the  port  and 
went  up  to  the  garrisons  in  Samaria,  Jericho,  and  Jeru- 
salem. Then  there  were  other  winding  roads  which 
connected  the  cities  and  villages  scattered  through  the 
country,  and  look  like  an  odd  net  spread  over  the  map. 

CENTERS   OF   POPULATION 

We  have  already  mentioned  the  chief  cities.  Jeru- 
salem, the  ancient  capital  of  Judaea,  was  a  strongly 
walled  city  in  the  highlands.  Here  was  the  temple, 
visited  each  year  by  thousands  of  pilgrims  from  all  over 
Palestine  and  wherever  else,  throughout  the  world,  Jew- 
ish families  resided. 

Samaria  was  another  ancient  city  in  the  heart  of 
the  hill  country.  But  loyal  Jews  never  visited  it;  for 
the  Samaritans  were  a  mixed  race,  and  had  a  temple 
of  their  own  which  they  preferred  to  that  at  Jerusalem. 

Nazareth,  where  Jesus  grew  up,  was  on  the  southern 
edge  of  the  GaHlean  hills,  on  the  very  border  of  the 
fertile  Plain  of  Esdraelon. 

Capernaum  was  on  the  road  from  Damascus  to 
Egypt;  and  here  was  the  customs-house,  where  the 
freighted  caravans  were  taxed  for  their  use  of  the  road 
through  Palestine. 


14  THE  LIFE  AND  TIMES  OF  JESUS 

Tiberias,  on  the  southwest  shore  of  the  lake,  was  a 
new  city,  built  by  Herod  Antipas  in  honor  of  the  Roman 
emperor.  It  was  finished  just  before  Jesus  began  his 
public  ministry.  So  far  as  we  know,  he  never  entered 
it.  Though  it  was  the  capital  of  Galilee,  no  loyal  Jew 
would  visit  Tiberias.  It  was  a  pagan  city,  and  defiled — 
for  a  cemetery  had  been  disturbed  when  its  walls  were 
built,  and  in  Jewish  eyes  this  made  the  city  polluted. 

Then  there  were  other  cities  besides  Tiberias  and 
Samaria  which  faithful  Jews  rarely  entered,  for  to  do  so 
meant  defiling  contact  with  idolatry.  Such  were  cer- 
tain cities  along  the  Mediterranean  coast,  and  the  cities 
of  Decapolis,  east  of  Galilee  and  the  Jordan.  Even  in 
Galilee  and  Judaea  there  were  scattered  colonies  of 
"Gentiles"  or  foreigners,  Greeks,  Syrians,  Arabs,  Egyp- 
tians, and  people  from  all  countries,  drawn  to  Palestine 
by  the  prospect  of  trade  or  by  the  fame  of  its  fertile  soil. 

Wide-spread  fame. — Traders  passed  ceaselessly 
through  the  land,  for  Palestine  was  the  great  "land- 
bridge"  between  Asia  and  Europe  and  Africa.  Her 
baths  and  springs  were  famous  all  over  the  world,  and 
many  travelers  visited  Palestine  to  enjoy  her  wonderful 
climate  and  delicious  fruits.  For  thousands  of  years 
great  empires  had  gone  to  war  in  order  to  possess  this 
rich  and  beautiful  country.  Now  it  was  in  peace,  under 
the  stable  government  of  Rome. 

Thus  it  was  in  no  remote  and  unfrequented  province 
that  our  Lord  was  born  and  grew  to  manhood.  On  the 
contrary,  he  lived  in  one  of  the  most  famous,  most 
prosperous,  and  most  populous  regions  in  the  world. 
Galilee  was  a  vast,  luxuriant  garden,  rich  in  the  pro- 
ducts of  nature  and  filled  with  crowded  cities.  Here  he 
spent  his  boyhood;  and  here,  among  its  multitudes,  he 
went  about  doing  good,  healing  the  sick,  teaching  men 


THE  LAND  WHERE  JESUS  LIVED  15 

to  love  and  obey  their  Father  in  heaven,  and  proclaiming 
the  good  tidings  of  the  Kingdom  of  God. 

STUDY  TOPICS 

1.  Find  Palestine  in  your  geography  (map  of  Asia).   Sup- 

pose you  are  planning  a  journey  to  the  Holy  Land: 
which  route  do  you  prefer? 

2.  Turn  to  the  map  of  Palestine  in  this  book.    Trace  the 

road  from  Damascus  to  Egypt.  Show  how  you 
would  go  from  Nazareth  to  Jerusalem ;  from  Nazareth 
to  Capernaum ;  from  Bethsaida  to  Jericho. 

3.  Palestine  is  140  miles  long  by  80  miles  wide.     How 

does  it  compare  with  your  own  state  in  size? 

4.  How  far  is  Albany  from  New  York  ?    Indianapolis  from 

Chicago?  Los  Angeles  from  San  Francisco?  Nash- 
ville from  Atlanta?  Compare  the  distance  from 
Nazareth  to  Jerusalem. 

5.  Can  3'-ou  explain  the  change  which  has  taken  place  in 

Palestine?  Why  do  so  few  people  live  there  now 
compared  to  the  number  in  the  first  century? 

6.  Do  you  know  how  to  pronounce  Ptolemais,  Esdraelon, 

Gennesaret,  Capernaum,  Bethsaida,  Magdala,  Chora- 
zin  '1    What  and  where  was  each  '1 

7.  Describe  the  industries  of  Palestine  in  the  time  of 

Jesus. 

8.  Draw  a  map  of  Palestine,  locating  its  principal  divi- 

sions, cities,  and  rivers. 


CHAPTER  II 
THE  BIRTH  OF  JESUS 

In  the  days  of  Jesus  the  Jews  were  no  longer  a  free 
and  independent  people.  Like  almost  every  country  in 
the  world,  Palestine  was  under  the  government  of  Rome. 
The  Romans  had  divided  the  empire  which  they  con- 
quered into  provinces,  and  Palestine  was  only  the 
southern  end  of  the  province  of  Syria.  In  the  year 
63  B.  C,  when  Jesus'  grandfather  was  a  boy,  the  Roman 
general  Pompey  had  come  up  into  the  hills  with  an  army 
and  captured  Jerusalem.  No  doubt  Jesus  was  often 
told  the  story  of  this  conquest. 

THE   ROMAN   RULE 

For  a  hundred  years  Palestine  had  enjoyed  inde- 
pendence under  the  noble  Jewish  dynasty  known  as 
the  Maccabees.  But  at  the  end  of  the  century  civil  war 
had  broken  out  through  the  quarrel  of  two  brothers, 
Hyrcanus  and  Aristobulus,  each  claiming  to  be  the  law- 
ful high  priest  and  king. 

The  capture  of  Jerusalem. — This  controversy  gave 
the  Romans  their  opportunity.  Pompey  led  his  troops 
down  to  Jericho,  rested  there  over  night,  and  next  day 
marched  up  to  Jerusalem.  The  people  opened  the  gates 
and  welcomed  him,  but  Aristobulus  and  his  followers 
fortified  the  temple  and  prepared  for  a  siege. 

For  three  months  the  siege  continued,  until  one  au- 
tumn day  in  the  year  63,  the  troops  broke  into  the  tem- 
ple, killed  the  priests  at  the  altar,  and  seized  Aristo- 
bulus.   He  was  taken  to  Rome  as  a  captive,  and  marched 

16 


THE  BIRTH  OF  JESUS  17 

in  Pompey's  triumph.  Hyrcanus  was  left  as  high  priest, 
but  without  any  royal  power;  and  thenceforth  Judaea, 
like  the  rest  of  Palestine,  was  under  the  government 
of  Rome. 

King  Herod. — A  few  years  later,  however,  the 
Romans  gave  the  Jews  a  king,  who  was  to  reign  under 
the  oversight  of  the  Governor  of  Syria — somewhat  as 
the  rajahs  of  India  rule  under  the  British  viceroy.  This 
king  was  Herod.  He  was  not  a  member  of  the  de- 
throned Maccabean  house,  but  only  a  half-Jewish 
Idumean,  a  clever,  progressive,  but  unscrupulous  man. 

For  a  while  the  Jews  rejoiced  to  have  once  more  a 
king  of  their  own.  Herod  began  to  rebuild  the  temple 
and  to  beautify  Jerusalem,  his  capital.  Great  public 
buildings  were  erected  in  Judaea,  Samaria  and  Galilee, 
and  at  Caesarea,  on  the  sea.  Even  across  the  Jordan 
the  old  forts  and  miUtary  outposts  were  transformed 
into  cities,  with  castles  and  palaces,  theaters  and  mar- 
kets. 

But  Herod  was  a  tyrant — proud,  jealous,  and  merci- 
less. He  suspected  everyone  about  him  of  disloyalty 
and  intrigue,  and  put  to  death  not  only  the  descendants 
of  the  Maccabees,  lest  they  should  head  a  revolution, 
but  even  three  of  his  own  sons,  and  the  mother  of  two 
of  them,  Mariamne.  His  own  miserable  life  was  ended 
in  the  year  4  B.  C,  after  he  had  reigned  thirty-seven 
years. 

The  sons  of  Herod. — Augustus  was  now  the  Roman 
emperor,  and  so  with  him  lay  the  choice  of  Herod's 
successor.  He  parceled  out  the  country  among  three  of 
the  surviving  sons  of  Herod — Archelaus,  to  whom  he 
gave  Judaea  and  Samaria;  Antipas,  who  received  Galilee 
and  Perea;  and  Philip,  to  whom  went  the  region  north  of 
Perea  and  east  of  Galilee. 


i8  THE  LIFE  AND  TIMES  OF  JESUS 

The  census. — In  the  year  in  which  Herod  died  a 
census  had  been  ordered  by  the  Emperor  Augustus. 
For  he  kept  a  book,  which  he  called  his  "Breviary  of  the 
Whole  Empire,"  in  which  were  entered  the  population 
and  mihtary  forces  of  all  the  nations  under  the  Roman 
rule.  To  make  the  figures  accurate,  a  census  had  to  be 
taken  from  time  to  time. 

In  Palestine  the  census  was  not  taken  from  house  to 
house,  as  elsewhere,  and  as  we  take  it  to-day.  It  was 
taken  by  famiUes.  And  even  if  members  of  a  family 
lived  in  some  remote  region  they  would  return  home 
for  the  census,  so  as  to  be  enrolled  in  their  native  city 
or  village. 

The  journey  to  Bethlehem. — So  it  came  to  pass  that 
Joseph  and  Mary  went  up  from  Nazareth  in  Galilee  to 
their  native  village  in  Judaea  for  the  census.  Bethlehem 
was  their  birthplace,  a  little  town  five  miles  south  of 
Jerusalem  on  the  road  to  Gaza.  Here  still  lived  de- 
scendants of  the  family  of  King  David,  who  had  reigned 
over  Palestine  a  thousand  years  before;  and  even  in  the 
days  when  Jews  had  lost  their  freedom  this  family  was 
proud  to  be  of  his  "house  and  lineage." 

The  birth  of  Jesus. — And  here,  in  this  little  \illage, 
Jesus  was  born  at  the  time  of  the  census.  The  beautiful 
story  of  his  birth;  the  message  to  the  shepherds  abiding 
in  the  field,  keeping  watch  over  their  flocks  by  night; 
the  song  of  the  angels,  "Peace  on  earth,  good  will  to 
men;"  the  manger  used  for  his  cradle — all  this  beautiful 
tale  you  have  heard  every  Christmas  you  can  re- 
member. 

It  is  found  in  the  second  chapter  of  the  Gospel  accord- 
ing to  Saint  Luke.  And  since  it  has  never  been  told  so 
well  by  anyone  else,  you  must  read  it  in  the  words  of  the 
Gospel : 


THE  BIRTH  OF  JESUS  19 

"Now  it  came  to  pass  in  those  days,  that  a  decree 
was  issued  by  Caesar  Augustus  for  a  census  of  the 
whole  world.  This  was  the  first  census  taken  when 
Quirinius  was  governor  of  Syria.  And  all  went  to 
be  enrolled,  every  one  to  his  own  city.  And  Joseph 
also  went  up  from  Galilee,  from  the  city  of  Nazareth, 
into  Judaea,  to  the  city  of  David,  which  is  called 
Bethlehem,  because  he  was  of  the  house  and  family 
of  David.  So  he  went  to  be  enrolled  with  Mary, 
who  was  betrothed  to  him. 

"And  it  came  to  pass,  while  they  were  there,  that 
she  brought  forth  her  firstborn  son ;  and  she  wrapped 
him  in  swaddling  clothes,  and  laid  him  in  a  manger, 
because  there  was  no  room  for  them  at  the  inn. 

"Now  there  were  shepherds  in  the  same  country 
abiding  in  the  field,  keeping  watch  over  their  flock 
by  night.  And  the  angel  of  the  Lord  stood  by  them, 
and  the  glory  of  the  Lord  shone  roimd  about  them; 
and  they  were  sore  afraid.  And  the  angel  said  to 
them,  'Be  not  afraid:  for  behold,  I  bring  you  good 
tidings  of  great  joy  which  shall  be  to  all  the  people ; 
for  there  is  bom  to  you  this  day  in  the  city  of  David 
a  savior,  which  is  Christ  the  Lord.  And  this  is  the 
sign  imto  you:  you  shall  find  a  babe  wrapped  in 
swaddling  clothes,  and  Ijring  in  a  manger.'  And 
suddenly  there  was  with  the  angel  a  multitude  of 
the  heavenly  host,  praising  God  and  sajdng, 
"  'Glory  in  the  highest  to  God, 
And  on  earth  peace 
Among  men  whom  He  favors.* 

"And  it  came  to  pass,  when  the  angels  went  away 
from  them  into  heaven,  the  shepherds  said  one  to 
another,  'Let  us  now  go  to  Bethlehem,  and  see  this 
thing  that  is  come  to  pass  which  the  Lord  has  made 
known  imto  us.'  And  they  came  with  haste,  and 
found  both  Mary  and  Joseph,  and  the  babe  lying  in 
the  manger.    And  when  they  saw  it,  they  repeated 


20  THE  LIFE  AND  TIMES  OF  JESUS 

what  had  been  told  them  by  the  angel  about  this 
child. 

"And  all  that  heard  it  wondered  at  the  things 
which  were  spoken  unto  them  by  the  shepherds. 
But  Mary  kept  all  these  sayings,  pondering  them  in 
her  heart.  And  the  shepherds  returned,  glorifying 
and  praising  God  for  all  the  things  that  they  had 
heard  and  seen,  even  as  it  was  spoken  unto  them." 

— Luke  2 : 1-20. 

THE    CHILD 

When  Jesus  was  eight  days  old  he  was  given  his  name. 
This  had  already  been  decided  upon:  he  was  to  be  called 
"Jesus."  It  was  a  noble  name,  meaning  "Jehovah 
saves,"  and  had  been  borne  by  great  men  in  the  past— 
by  Joshua,  who  led  the  people  into  Palestine  after  the 
death  of  Moses;  and  by  a  great  high  priest  in  the  days 
of  Zechariah  and  Zerubbabel,  after  the  return  of  the 
Jews  from  exile. 

The  Presentation. — A  month  later  Jesus  was  taken 
up  to  the  temple  in  Jerusalem.  Every  Jewish  boy  was 
thus  taken  and  presented  to  the  Lord,  just  as  Christian 
children  are  presented  to  Him  in  baptism.  A  sacrifice 
was  offered  on  the  altar,  and  then  he  was  taken  home. 
From  now  on  he  belonged  to  God,  he  was  "holy  to  the 
Lord,"  he  was  a  child  of  God  and  a  member  of  the 
sacred  race. 

A  wonderful  incident  occurred  that  day  in  the  temple 
when  Jesus  was  presented.  An  old  man  by  the  name  of 
Simeon,  who  lived  in  Jerusalem  and  spent  much  of  his 
time  in  the  temple  worshiping  God  and  praying  that  He 
would  send  the  Messiah  to  free  His  people,  came  in 
when  the  sacrifice  was  offered. 

It  had  been  revealed  to  him  by  the  Holy  Spirit  that 
he  should  not  die  until  he  had  seen  the  Messiah;  and 


THE  BIRTH  OF  JESUS  21 

when  he  now  saw  Jesus  he  believed  that  his  prayers 
were  answered.  This  little  child,  this  son  of  David, 
was  the  Lord's  Messiah!  And  so  he  took  the  child  in 
his  arms  and  gave  thanks  to  God: 

"Lord,  now  lettest  Thou  Thy  servant  depart 

In  peace,  according  to  Thy  word ! 
For  mine  eyes  have  seen  Thy  salvation. 
Which  Thou  hast  prepared  before  the  face  of  all 
peoples. 
To  be  a  light  to  lighten  the  Gentiles 
And  the  glory  of  Thy  people  Israel!" 

— Luke  2 :  29-32. 

Then  he  blessed  Mary  and  Joseph  and  the  little 
child.  And  there  came  in  an  aged  woman,  Anna,  who 
was  a  prophetess.  Like  Simeon,  she  spent  much  of  her 
time  in  the  temple,  fasting  and  praying  night  and  day 
for  "the  redemption  of  Jerusalem"  from  its  yoke  of 
bondage.  She  had  seen  Simeon  take  the  child  in  his 
arms  and  say  his  words  of  blessing  and  thanksgiving. 
And  she  too  recognized  the  Messiah  in  this  tiny  babe, 
and  spoke  of  him  to  the  others  who  were  gathered  there 
to  pray  for  Messiah's  coming. 

What  a  wonderful  impression  this  must  have  made 
upon  Mary,  the  mother  of  Jesus!  The  Gospel  says 
that  she  kept  all  these  sayings  in  her  heart,  and 
pondered  them. 

The  "Magnificat." — Do  you  know  the  beautiful 
hymn  which  she  sang  when  first  she  knew  that  Jesus 
was  to  be  born?  It  is  found  in  the  first  chapter  of 
Saint  Luke,  and  every  boy  and  girl  should  learn  it. 
No  doubt  she  taught  it  to  Jesus  when  he  was  old 
enough  to  learn;  and  perhaps  she  sang  it  softly  as  they 
went  down  that  day  from  the  temple,  and  she  knew 


22  THE  LIFE  AND  TIMES  OF  JESUS 

that  her  own  dear  baby  was  the  one  whom  God  had 
sent  to  save  His  people. 

"My  soul  doth  magnify  the  Lord, 

And  my  spirit  hath  rejoiced  in  God  my  Savior. 
For  He  hath  looked  upon  the  low  estate  of  His  hand- 
maiden : 
And  behold,  from  henceforth  all  generations  shall 
call  me  blessed. 
For  He  that  is  mighty  hath  done  for  me  great  things, 
And  holy  is  His  name. 

"And  His  mercy  is  upon  them  that  fear  Him 

Throughout  all  generations. 
He  hath  showed  strength  with  His  arm; 
He  hath  scattered  the  proud  in  the  imagination  of 
their  heart. 
He  hath  put  down  princes  from  their  thrones. 
And  exalted  them  of  low  degree. 

"The  hungry  He  hath  filled  with  good  things, 
And  the  rich  He  hath  sent  empty  away. 
He  hath  helped  Israel  His  servant, 

That  He  might  remember  mercy — 
As  He  promised  to  our  forefathers — 

Toward  Abraham  and  his  seed  for  ever." 

— ^Luke  1:46-55. 

And  so  when  they  had  accomplished  all  things  that 
were  required  by  the  sacred  Law,  they  returned  to 
Galilee,  to  their  home  in  Nazareth.  "And  the  child 
grew  and  waxed  strong,  filled  with  wisdom:  and  the 
grace  of  God  was  upon  him." 

STUDY  TOPICS 

1.  Who  were  the  Maccabees?    (See  encyclopedia.) 

2.  Consult  a  Roman  history  and  learn  what  countries 

were  under  the  rule  of  Rome  at  the  time  of  Jesus' 
birth. 


THE  BIRTH  OF  JESUS  23 

3.  Refer  to  the  map  of  Palestine  and  locate  the  territory 

given  by  Augustus  to  each  of  Herod's  sons  to  rule. 
Also  locate  Caesarea. 

4.  Where  was  the  village  of  Bethlehem?    Tell  what  you 

know  of  it. 

5.  Trace  on  the  map  two  routes  from  Nazareth  to  Jeru- 

salem.    Which  do  you  think  would  be  the  easier 
journey  with  a  little  baby? 

6.  Tell  in  your  own  words  the  story  of  the  birth;  tell  it 

as  nearly  as  you  can  just  as  Luke  has  told  it. 

7 .  Relate  the  incident  which  occurred  in  the  temple  when 

Jesus  was  presented. 

8.  Tell  the  story  of  the  Magnificat.    Commit  it  to  mem- 

ory. 


CHAPTER  III 
JESUS'  HOME  IN  NAZARETH 

On  the  morning  of  the  third  day  of  their  returning 
journey  from  Judaea,  as  they  descended  the  southern 
hills,  or  came  up  into  the  plain  from  the  Jordan  Valley, 
Joseph  and  Mary  caught  sight  of  the  familiar  hill  of 
Nazareth.  Near  its  summit  they  could  just  make  out 
the  white  cluster  which  was  their  own  village.  Between 
them  and  it  lay  the  broad  Plain  of  Esdraelon.  But  by 
nightfall  they  would  be  safely  home  with  their  precious 
burden,  which  Mary  held  in  her  arms  as  she  rode  upon 
the  plodding,  gentle  ass  which  Joseph  led.  From  time 
to  time  as  they  journeyed  on  they  could  make  out  more 
clearly  the  streets  and  houses — first  twenty  miles  away, 
then  fifteen,  then  ten,  then  five — until  at  last  they  were 
leaving  the  valley  and  climbing  the  road  which  led  to 
their  very  door. 

THE   SURROUNDINGS 

In  those  days  Nazareth  must  have  looked  somewhat 
as  it  does  to-day.  It  was  a  scattered  group  of  houses  on 
the  hillside,  with  crooked  streets,  and  perhaps  a  few 
olive  or  fig  trees  or  grape-vines  in  the  tiny  yards. 

Home  life  in  Nazareth. — The  houses  were  square, 
and  built  of  stone  and  gray,  sun-dried  brick.  None  of 
them  was  very  large;  they  had  only  two  or  three  rooms, 
and  the  stairway,  if  there  was  one,  ran  up  outside  to  the 
roof  (made  of  clay  and  dried  in  the  sun),  where  the 
family  slept  on  hot  summer  nights.  The  village  water 
supply  was  a  cool  spring,  which  is  now  called  "the 
Virgin's  Fountain."     Every  day  the  women  and  girls 

24 


JESUS'  HOME  IN  NAZARETH  25 

of  the  village  brought  their  jars  to  fill  them  at  the 
spring.  And  here  Jesus,  when  he  was  a  little  older 
and  able  to  walk,  followed  his  mother  as  she  went  for 
water. 

There  was  a  synagogue  in  the  village.  For  wherever 
ten  Jewish  famiHes  lived  a  synagogue  was  established. 
Beside  the  synagogue  stood  the  schoolhouse,  where  the 
boys  learned  to  read  and  write.  And  then  there  were  a 
few  shops — just  as  every  little  village  to-day  has  a 
general  store  and  a  blacksmith  shop  and  perhaps  a 
meat-market.  Among  them  was  the  carpenter  shop 
kept  by  Joseph. 

The  carpenter  shop. — We  can  imagine  what  this 
shop  was  like.  It  was,  perhaps,  only  one  room  in  the 
house  where  the  family  lived.  With  his  few  simple 
tools — saws,  chisels,  a  hammer  and  an  axe,  with  knives 
for  shaving  and  planing — Joseph  fashioned  the  imple- 
ments used  by  the  farmers  of  the  neighborhood.  These 
were  crude  wooden  plows  and  rakes:  forks  and  fans  for 
shaking  out  the  grain  after  it  had  been  trodden  on  the 
threshing-floor;  yokes  for  the  oxen;  carts  and  cart- 
wheels; wooden  shovels;  handles  for  sickles  and  knives; 
chairs  and  tables  for  household  use;  doors  and  door- 
frames and  wooden  locks  and  keys. 

Here,  while  he  was  still  a  Httle  boy,  Jesus  would  listen 
to  the  men  talk  as  they  came  in  to  buy  implements  or 
furniture,  or  to  order  them  made — especially  on  the 
rainy  days  of  winter,  when  no  work  could  be  done  in 
the  fields.  Here  they  would  discuss  the  weather,  or  the 
Romans,  or  the  tax-collectors,  or  the  news  just  brought 
to  the  larger  cities  by  travelers  and  caravan-drivers. 
And  when  they  came  to  pay  for  Joseph's  wares  or  his 
work,  it  would  probably  be  in  produce  as  often  as  in 
money — grain  or  poultry  or  dried  fruits. 


26  THE  LIFE  AND  TIMES  OF  JESUS 

WHERE   JESUS   WENT  TO   CHURCH 

On  Sabbaths  everyone  in  Nazareth  went  to  the  syna- 
gogue. This  was  their  finest  building,  and  the  whole 
village  was  proud  of  it.  As  they  entered,  the  women 
went  to  one  side  and  sat  down  and  the  men  went  to  the 
other;  the  girls  sat  with  their  mothers,  and  boys  with 
their  fathers.  Up  in  front  was  the  chancel  or  pulpit, 
where  Lessons  from  the  Law  and  Prophets  were  read, 
and  where  the  rabbi— if  there  was  one — sat  to  expound 
the  Law. 

The  Bible  on  a  scroU. — In  a  Httle  closet  or  "ark," 
with  curtains  hanging  before  it,  were  kept  the  precious 
scrolls  on  which  the  Bible  was  written.  You  may  some- 
time have  seen  such  a  scroll  as  these  were — a  long  strip 
of  parchment  with  the  ends  fastened  to  rods  of  wood, 
which  were  then  rolled  together.  To  find  the  place, 
one  had  to  wind  the  scroll  on  one  rod  and  unroll  it  from 
the  other. 

The  man  who  had  charge  of  the  services  and  the 
care  of  the  building  was  called  "the  Ruler  of  the  Syna- 
gogue." On  the  Sabbath  it  was  his  duty  to  invite 
certain  men  in  the  congregation  to  come  forward  and 
read  the  appointed  Scripture  Lessons. 

The  service. — The  Bible  was,  of  course,  written  in 
the  Hebrew  language;  but  in  our  Lord's  time  the  Jews 
no  longer  spoke  Hebrew.  Instead,  they  spoke  a  dialect 
called  Aramaic,  which  was  like  Hebrew,  but  differently 
pronounced.  And  so  it  was  necessary  after  each  Lesson 
to  interpret  it,  and  give  its  explanation  in  the  language 
commonly  understood.  The  man  who  did  this  had  the 
title  of  Methurgeman,  or  "Interpreter." 

After  Jesus  grew  up  he  was  often  asked  to  read  and 
interpret  the  Lessons  in  the  synagogue.     As  a  boy  he 


JESUS'  HOME  IN  NAZARETH  27 

went  every  Sabbath  and  sat  beside  Joseph  and  joined 
in  the  prayers  and  listened  to  the  reading  and  expound- 
ing of  the  Bible — for  that  was  all  the  sermon  they  had. 
Morning  and  evening  every  Jew  recited  a  section  from 
the  Law,  which  was  called  the  Shema  (or  "Hear"),  from 
the  first  word  of  the  passage  in  Hebrew. 

"Hear,  O  Israel,  the  Lord  our  God,  the  Lord  is 
One. 

"And  thou  shalt  love  the  Lord  thy  God  with  all 
thy  heart,  and  with  all  thy  soul,  and  with  all  thy 
might. 

"And  these  words,  which  I  command  thee  this  day, 
shall  be  upon  thy  heart:  and  thou  shalt  teach  them 
diligently  to  thy  children;  and  thou  shalt  talk  of 
them  when  thou  sittest  in  thy  house,  and  when  thou 
walkest  in  the  way,  and  when  thou  liest  down,  and 
when  thou  risest  up.  And  thou  shalt  bind  them  for 
a  sign  upon  thy  hand,  and  they  shall  be  for  frontlets 
between  thine  eyes.  And  thou  shalt  write  them 
upon  the  door  posts  of  thy  house,  and  upon  thy 
gates." — Deuteronomy  6:4-9. 

Not  only  was  this  passage  said  morning  and  evening 
("when  thou  liest  down  and  when  thou  risest  up"),  but 
the  latter  part  was  literally  obeyed.  The  Pharisees  wore 
Uttle  leather  boxes  bound  to  their  foreheads,  containing 
the  commandments  written  in  fine  handwriting  on  very 
thin  parchment  or  skin.  These  were  called  phylacteries. 
And  beside  the  doorway  of  every  house  was  a  mezuzah, 
like  a  tiny  mail-box,  containing  the  commandments  of 
the  Law.  Thus  the  requirement  of  Deuteronomy  was 
strictly  observed. 

On  the  Sabbath,  in  addition  to  the  Lessons,  the  Shema 
and  the  reading  of  Psalms,  the  stated  prayers  were  said. 


28  THE  LIFE  AND  TIMES  OF  JESUS 

Many  of  them  were  very  beautiful.  Here  is  a  part  of 
one  which  was  used  at  the  morning  service  on  that 
day: 

"Blessed  art  Thou,  O  Lord,  our  God,  King  of  the 
universe,  who  formest  light  and  Greatest  darkness, 
who  makest  peace  and  Greatest  all  things:  Who  in 
Thy  mercy  givest  light  to  the  earth  and  to  them  that 
dwell  thereon,  and  in  Thy  goodness  renewest  the 
creation  every  day  continually.  How  manifold  are 
thy  works,  O  Lord:  In  wisdom  hast  thou  made 
them  all:  the  earth  is  full  of  thy  possessions  .  .  .  ." 
— From  the  Jewish  Prayer  Book. 

GOING  TO   SCHOOL 

Beside  the  synagogue  was  the  school.  Here  the  boys 
of  the  village  learned  to  read  and  write. 

What  the  pupils  studied. — But  at  first  they  had 
no  books.  Instead,  they  sat  about  their  teacher  in  a 
circle  on  the  floor,  and  he  read  to  them  from  the  Bible. 
This  they  memorized,  as  he  read,  and  recited  it  after 
him.  As  they  learned  to  write,  they  copied  down  what 
he  read  to  them.  At  the  age  of  five  a  boy  began  in 
this  way  to  learn  the  Scripture.  At  ten  he  began 
to  study  the  explanation  of  the  Law  made  by 
the  scribes  or  rabbis.  Very  early  he  learned  the  Shema 
and  the  Ten  Commandments  and  some  of  the  Psalms 
and  prayers  used  in  the  synagogue. 

Through  the  Old  Testament  (the  Jewish  Bible),  Jesus 
heard  the  voice  of  his  Father  speaking  to  him.  Its 
stories  were  stories  of  men  and  women  who  had  loved 
and  served  God.  And  he,  too,  loved  God,  and  wanted 
to  do  great  deeds  for  him.  The  Psalms,  the  Law,  the 
Prophets  were  the  most  wonderful  books  in  the  world  to 
him. 


JESUS'  HOME  IN  NAZARETH  29 

A  Son  of  the  Commandments. — Then,  one  day 
when  he  was  twelve  or  thirteen  years  old,  Jesus  was 
made  a  bar  mitswoth — a  "Son  of  the  Commandments" — 
and  after  that  he  was  supposed  to  keep  the  entire  Law, 
just  like  his  father  and  the  grown-up  men  of  the  con- 
gregation. Thereafter,  too,  since  he  was  a  bright, 
intelligent  boy,  he  was  permitted  to  read  the  Law  to 
the  congregation  in  the  synagogue.  This  was  a  happy 
day  for  his  parents.  We  can  imagine  how  Joseph  and 
Mary  observed  the  event  when  Jesus  first  read  the  Law 
in  the  synagogue,  wearing  their  best  clothes,  and  pro- 
\'iding  a  Sabbath  dinner  for  their  friends  and  neighbors 
in  honor  of  the  occasion.  It  was  like  a  graduation  day 
in  our  schools. 

Other  books. — There  were  other  books  which  people 
read  besides  the  Bible,  but  they  were  verj^  few,  and 
were  not  recommended  by  the  rabbis  (a  rabbi  was  both 
a  minister  and  a  school  teacher  in  one).  The  rabbis 
believed  that  everything  a  person  needed  to  know  was 
contained  in  the  Law  and  Prophets. 

And  so  boys  and  girls  had  no  story-books  like  ours — 
and  girls  were  not  taught  to  read  anyway.  But  even  so, 
they  loved  all  the  more  dearly  the  stories  which  were 
read  to  them  from  the  Old  Testament — from  Genesis 
and  Exodus  and  Joshua  and  Kings  and  Chronicles  and 
Nehemiah.  And  so,  also,  a  boy  who  really  loved  the 
Bible  came  to  know  it  perfectly,  and  to  understand  its 
message  about  God  and  righteousness,  the  pun- 
ishment for  sin,  and  the  forgiveness  of  the  divme  and 
all-loving  Father.  Jesus  knew  the  Old  Testament 
perfectly.  Even  on  the  cross  he  was  reciting  psalms 
which  he  had  learned  in  boyhood — at  home  by  his 
mother's  knee,  or  in  the  school  beside  the  synagogue 
at  Nazareth. 


30  THE  LIFE  AND  TIMES  OF  JESUS 

RECREATIONS 

After  he  became  old  enough  to  play  with  the  other 
boys,  he  learned  their  games — tag,  and  follow-the-leader, 
and  such  games  as  boys  have  always  enjoyed.  Then 
they  had  some  games  quite  different  from  ours — they 
would  play  synagogue  (as  children  to-day  "play  church") 
and  have  a  service  like  that  on  the  Sabbath;  or  they 
would  have  wedding  and  funeral  processions,  either 
dancing  to  the  pipe,  and  carrying  sticks  for  torches,  or 
waiUng  and  beating  their  breasts,  whichever  was  proper. 

Rambles  in  the  hills. — On  bright,  sunny  days  in 
summer  he  would  tramp  over  the  hills,  perhaps  with 
other  boys,  but  probably  alone.  Flowers  were  every- 
where, and  birds  sang  in  the  trees  and  meadows  beside 
the  road.  Jesus  knew  and  loved  God's  great  out-of- 
doors;  his  sermons  and  parables,  when  he  grew  up  and 
began  to  teach,  were  full  of  pictures  of  nature. 

THE   WORLD   OUTSIDE 

It  was  a  fine  view  one  got  from  the  top  of  the  hill, 
just  west  of  the  village  and  a  little  higher  up.  From 
the  summit  you  could  see  in  all  directions.  Off  to  the 
west  lay  Mount  Carmel,  covered  with  green  forests 
which  seemed  always  changing  their  hues  as  the  mists 
came  up  from  the  sea.  Beyond  lay  the  blue  Mediter- 
ranean, with  here  and  there  the  white  sail  of  a  coasting 
vessel  or  the  shining  side  of  a  Roman  trireme  gUstening 
in  the  sun.  To  the  north  were  the  great  mountains, 
beyond  which  lay  the  famous  cities  of  the  Gentiles, 
Tyre  and  Sidon  and  Antioch  and  Damascus.  Nearer 
by,  just  over  the  hills,  were  the  villages  of  Cana  and 
Sepphoris  (once  the  capital  of  Galilee,  before  Tiberias 
was  built),  and  Jotapata.  Eastward,  beyond  the  high 
ridges,  lay  the  Lake  and  its  surrounding  cities,  a  thriving 


JESUS'  HOME  IN  NAZARETH  31 

center  of  life  and  industry.  Compared  to  the  cities  on 
the  lake,  Nazareth  was  a  very  quiet,  even  dull,  sort  of  a 
place.  But  they  were  a  whole  day's  journey  away;  and 
boys  never  visited  that  far  from  home  unless  accom- 
panied by  their  fathers  or  relatives. 

The  caravans. — Across  the  hills  stretched  those  roads 
we  have  already  told  about.  There  was  that  old,  old 
road  with  its  dusty  caravans  making  their  way  from 
Egypt  to  Damascus  and  the  Valley  of  Euphrates,  or 
back  again.  This  road  passed  just  a  mile  or  two  below 
Nazareth,  in  the  valley.  From  the  hilltop  you  could 
almost  count  the  camels,  and  you  could  see  their  drivers 
trudging  along  beside  them.  East  and  west  through  the 
great  plain  ran  the  road  to  Ptolemais,  with  its  soldiers 
and  merchants  and  travelers. 

Thus  Nazareth  was  not  a  city  like  Capernaum  or 
Bethsaida;  it  was  a  country  village,  somewhat  secluded 
in  the  midst  of  its  beautiful  hills;  yet  it  was  near  enough 
the  busy,  thriving  centers,  near  enough  the  great  high- 
ways of  travel,  for  Jesus  to  know  what  was  going  on  in 
the  world. 

The  famous  city.— Off  to  the  south  stretched  the 
wide  and  beautiful  Plain  of  Esdraelon;  and  beyond  this 
were  the  hills,  dim  in  the  distance,  and  mounting  up, 
fold  behind  fold,  to  the  mountains  of  Samaria  and 
Judaea.  Up  in  these  mountains,  far  to  the  south,  lay 
the  most  wonderful  city  in  the  world,  where  was  God's 
Temple,  and  where  lived  the  sacred  prie.sts  and  scribes 
and  doctors  of  the  Law.  A  great  wall  surrounded  it, 
and  there  were  soldiers  guarding  the  gates.  And  every 
day  in  the  temple  sacrifices  were  offered  to  God. 

Ever  since  he  was  a  little  boy,  Jesus  had  been  told  of 
this  marvelous  city  by  those  who  vasited  it  each  year  to 
observe  the  feasts.    He  had  asked  many  questions  about 


32  THE  LIFE  AND  TIMES  OF  JESUS 

it,  and  he  imagined  very  well  what  it  was  like.  Best  of 
all,  in  another  year  or  two  he  would  be  old  enough  to 
go  along  when  his  parents  went  up  for  the  Passover. 
No  doubt  this  was  often  in  his  mind  as  he  came  home 
from  his  rambles  on  the  hills — some  day  he  too  would 
visit  Jerusalem,  the  Holy  City,  and  see  it  for  himself, 
and  walk  about  its  streets,  and  go  to  the  temple,  and 
worship  in  the  City  of  the  Great  King 

STUDY  TOPICS 

1.  Trace  the  probable  route  taken  by  Joseph  and  Mary 

as  they  crossed  the  Esdraelon  Valley  to  Nazareth. 

2.  Can  you  shut  your  eyes  and  see  the  city  of  Nazareth 

as  it  looked  when  Jesus  lived  there? 

3 .  Compare  the  service  in  the  Jewish  synagogue  of  Jesus' 

day  with  our  modem  church  service. 

4.  Compare  the  subjects  studied  in  the  old  Jewish  schools 

with  the  course  of  study  in  your  own  school.  If  our 
education  is  better  than  theirs,  should  more,  corre- 
spondingly, be  expected  of  us? 

5.  What  language  did  Jesus  speak?    What  language  did 

he  read? 

6.  Try  to  describe  a  day's  life  such  as. Jesus  must  have 

lived  when  he  was  your  age.  Have  in  mind  that  he 
learned  Joseph's  trade  and  helped  in  the  shop. 

7.  Did  you  ever  see  any  Hebrew  writing?     Find  some 

(see  dictionary  or  encyclopaedia),  and  see  what  it 
looks  like.    Are  any  of  the  letters  like  English  ? 

8.  What  is  your  favorite  book  in  the  Old  Testament? — 

your  favorite  story?  Do  you  think  that  Jesus  en- 
joyed it  when  he  was  a  boy?  What  was  the  Law? 
The  Prophets? 


CHAPTER  IV 
A  VISIT  TO  JERUSALEM 

At  last  the  day  came  when  Jesus  was  old  enough  to 
go  on  the  pilgrimage  to  Jerusalem.  For  weeks  prepara- 
tions had  been  made  for  the  journey.  Food  had  been 
prepared,  the  tent  and  clothing  packed,  and  arrange- 
ments made  for  leaving  the  younger  children  of  the 
household  with  one  of  the  neighbors  while  Joseph  and 
Mary  and  Jesus  were  away. 

THE    FEAST 

There  were  three  great  festivals  in  the  Jewish  year, 
when  every  faithful  Israelite  was  expected  to  go  to 
Jerusalem.  These  were  the  Passover,  held  in  March 
or  April;  the  Feast  of  Weeks,  which  came  fifty  days 
later;  and  the  Feast  of  Tabernacles,  in  September  or 
October.  But  most  Jews  who  lived  at  a  distance  from 
Jerusalem  were  able  to  attend  but  one  of  the  three 
each  year.  And  so,  Saint  Luke  says,  "His  parents 
went  every  year  to  Jerusalem  at  the  Feast  of  the  Pass- 
over": for  Galilee  was  too  far  from  Jerusalem  for  them 
to  attend  all  three  of  the  feasts. 

The  Passover. — Jesus  was,  of  course,  fully  instructed 
about  the  observance  of  the  festival  long  before  he  was 
allowed  to  go.  Not  only  had  he  heard  all  about  it  from 
older  boys  who  had  been  to  Jerusalem,  but  he  had 
studied  the  Law,  which  told  how  it  was  to  be  observed 
(see  Exodus  12;  Deuteronomy  16). 

Why  it  was  observed,  and  how. — The  Passover 
commemorated  the  escape  of  the  Israelites  from  slavery 
in  Egypt,  in  the  time  of  Moses.    Therefore,  the  Pass- 

33 


34  THE  LIFE  AND  TIMES  OF  JESUS 

over  meal  was  just  like  the  last  meal  their  forefathers 
had  eaten  in  Egypt:  they  wore  their  hats  and  coats, 
as  if  ready  to  depart;  they  ate  in  haste;  and  the  food, 
which  was  lamb  and  bitter  herbs  and  bread  made  with- 
out yeast,  was  entirely  consumed,  with  nothing  left  over. 
Just  as  our  Thanksgiving  dinner  is  as  much  like  the 
Pilgrims'  observance  of  Harvest  Home  as  our  mothers 
can  make  it,  so  their  feast  was  to  remind  them  of  the 
D  eli verance '  from  Pharaoh . 

The  hymns  of  thanksgiving. — But  this  was  not  all. 
The  reason  for  holding  the  feast  was  to  thank  God  for 
freedom  and  deH verance.  And  so  they  sang  hymns  of 
thanksgiving,  called  "the  Hallel."  These  hymns  are  in 
our  Bible,  Psalms  113  to  118.    They  begin  as  follows: 

"Praise  ye  Jehovah. 
Praise,  O  ye  servants  of  the  Lord, 
Praise  ye  the  name  of  Jehovah. 

Blessed  be  the  name  of  Jehovah 
From  this  time  forth  and  for  evermore; 
From  the  rising  of  the  sun  unto  its  going  down 
Jehovah's  name  is  to  be  praised." 

— Psalm  113: 1-2. 

And  the  reason  for  going  to  Jerusalem  to  celebrate 
the  feast  was  simply  this:  men  wanted  to  thank  God  as 
a  nation  for  what  He  had  given  them  as  a  nation.  Jeru- 
salem was  the  capital;  and  the  temple  was  the  great 
center  of  Jewish  religion.  It  was  the  natural  place  to 
observe  the  festival;  and  in  the  olden  times,  when  the 
Law  was  made,  all  Jews  lived  either  in  or  near  Jerusa- 
lem, so  that  it  was  no  hardship  to  attend. 

THE  JOURNEY 

And  so  they  started,  this  sunny  spring  day  in  the 
year  when  Jesus  was  twelve  years  old.     It  was  the 


A  VISIT  TO  JERUSALEM  35 

loveliest  time  of  the  year.  Flowers  were  in  bloom, 
birds  sang  sweetly  in  the  trees  and  bushes  by  the  road- 
side, the  fields  were  a  velvety  green,  and  sunshine 
flooded  the  earth  with  warmth  and  splendor.  The 
breeze  from  the  sea  was  no  longer  chill  and  damp: 
nor  had  the  burning  heat  of  summer  arrived  with  its 
hot  winds  from  the  far  away  deserts  of  the  east  and 

south. 

The  company.— There  were  many  in  the  company 
going  from  Nazareth.  One  or  two  at  least,  perhaps 
more,  came  from  every  household  in  town.  Soon  the 
group  from  Nazareth  was  joined  by  others  from  nearby 
villages.  For  several  days  every  road  to  the  south 
would  be  crowded  with  Passover  pilgrims. 

In  the  evenings  they  put  up  their  tents  and  camped 
beside  the  road.  The  boys,  if  not  too  tired,  played 
games.  After  a  while  they  sat  down  by  the  fire  and 
Ustened  while  their  fathers  told  of  other  journeys; 
of  the  wonderful  city  which  lay  at  the  end  of  the 
road;  of  the  great  temple  which  King  Herod  had 
begun  to  rebuild  before  he  died,  and  which  was  still 
unfinished. 

At  early  dawn  the  camp  was  astir.  After  a  hasty 
breakfast  the  day's  travel  began.  And  as  they  journeyed 
the  pilgrims  sang  those  old  chants  which  we  find  in  the 
Book  of  Psalms  (120  to  134),  called  the  "Songs  of 
Ascents." 

"Jerusalem,  thou  art  builded 
As  a  city  that  is  compact  together : 
Whither  the  tribes  go  up,  even  the  tribes  of  Jeho- 
vah, 
For  an  ordinance  for  Israel, 
To  give  thanks  to  the  name  of  Jehovah." 

—Psalm  122:3-4. 


36  THE  LIFE  AND  TIMES  OF  JESUS 

AT  JERUSALEM 

As  the  afternoon  advanced,  and  they  were  nearing 
the  Mount  of  Olives,  Joseph  told  Jesus  to  watch  now 
for  his  first  sight  of  the  Holy  City.  As  they  rounded  the 
hill,  there  before  him  it  lay,  vast  and  majestic  in  the 
April  sunlight. 

The  view  of  the  city. — Nearest  by,  he  could  see  its 
northern  wall,  high  and  massive — with  the  great  stone 
towers  which  Herod  had  built  above  the  gates.  But 
higher  still,  above  the  walls,  on  the  hill  of  Zion  stood 
the  temple.  It  was  built  of  marble  and  cedar;  and  on 
its  front,  facing  eastward,  and  on  its  sides,  were  huge 
plates  of  shining  gold.  Its  towers  or  "pinnacles"  were 
i8o  feet  high.  Smoke  was  ascending  from  the  altar, 
where  fire  burned  perpetually.  Soon  it  would  be  time 
for  the  evening  sacrifice,  when  clouds  of  smoke  and  in- 
cense should  arise.  Already  he  could  see  the  courts  of 
the  temple  filled  with  crowds  of  worshipers. 

Far  off  to  the  south  and  west,  beyond  the  temple, 
and  across  the  roofs  of  the  houses,  could  be  seen  the 
palace  of  Herod,  now  the  home  of  the  Roman  governor. 
(For  in  the  year  6  A.  D.  the  Emperor  had  deposed 
Archelaus,  and  appointed  a  governor  in  his  stead.) 
Away  to  the  south,  visible  now  as  they  ascended  the 
crest  of  the  Mount  of  Olives,  was  the  steep  wall,  rising 
sheer  one  hundred  and  fifty  feet  above  the  Kidron  Val- 
ley. Far  beyond,  in  the  background,  lay  the  haze- 
wrapped  mountains  of  Judsea. 

Camping  for  the  night. — They  did  not  enter  the 
city  that  night,  but  camped  on  the  hillside.  Jerusalem 
was  already  overcrowded.  Every  house  had  its  guests, 
and  there  was  no  more  room  within  the  walls.  Israelites 
from  all  over  the  world  had  come  to  the  feast.     Poor 


GREAT    WALL    OF    JERUSALEM 


A  VISIT  TO  JERUSALEM  37 

country  people  from  Galilee  had  no  relatives  who  might 
entertain  them  in  the  great  city. 

IN   THE   TEMPLE 

Early  next  morning  they  awoke;  for,  shortly  before 
dawn,  the  priests  in  the  temple  blew  their  trumpets  to 
rouse  the  sleeping  city  for  worship. 

The  morning  sacrifice. — First  the  priests  ap- 
pointed to  offer  the  morning  sacrifice  made  ready  the 
altar— they  removed  the  ashes,  raked  the  embers,  and 
placed  fresh  wood  upon  it.  Then  those  appointed 
to  open  the  temple  gates  did  so.  It  required  twenty 
men  to  open  them,  they  were  so  heavy.  Then  the  gates 
of  the  city  were  opened  by  the  soldiers  who  kept  guard 
and  lived  in  the  towers  above  them. 

As  soon  as  the  gates  were  open  Jesus  and  Mary  and 
Joseph  entered  and  went  up  to  the  temple.  His  mother 
entered  the  Court  of  the  Women,  while  Joseph  and  Jesus 
went  farther  in,  to  the  Court  of  the  Men  of  Israel. 

Then,  just  as  the  sun  rose  over  the  eastern  hills,  the 
white-robed  choir  of  Levites  began  the  morning  hymn, 
accompanied  by  cymbals  and  trumpets.  The  sacrifice 
was  ofTered  upon  the  high  altar  just  outside  the  sanc- 
tuary, and  the  priests  pronounced  the  blessing  "in  the 
divine  Name." 

God's  house. — The  service  was  over.  But  the  three 
no  doubt  lingered  in  the  sacred  courts,  offering  prayers 
and  thanks  to  God  in  His  very  presence.  For  the 
temple  was  God's  House,  and  here,  of  all  places  on 
earth,  people  could  come  nearest  to  Him.  Jesus  re- 
peated the  prayers  he  had  long  ago  learned  to  say; 
but  also,  out  of  his  adoring  heart,  he  poured  forth  love 
and  worship  and  thanksgiving  to  his  Father  in  heaven. 
Mary  and  Joseph — can  you  imagine  what   were  their 


.38  THE  LIFE  AND  TIMES  OF  JESUS 

prayers?  Do  you  not  suppose  that  they  prayed  very 
earnestly  for  the  Boy  whom  they  loved  so  dearly,  who 
had  now  come  for  the  first  time  in  his  life,  since  he  was  a 
tiny  babe,  into  his  Father's  House? 

How  wonderful  an  impression  this  visit  made  upon 
Jesus!  It  was  the  greatest  event  in  all  his  boyhood. 
The  city,  the  crowds,  the  temple,  the  priests,  the  sac- 
rifice, the  wonder  and  splendor  and  awe  of  the  holy 
place — all  this  must  have  overshadowed  the  Passover 
meal,  which  was  after  all  only  one  incident  of  that 
memorable  journey.  Never  could  he  forget  this  festival 
and  the  multitude  of  things  he  had  seen  and  heard. 

THE   RETURN 

Nor  was  his  mother  ever  to  forget  it!  For  this  was 
the  time  when  Jesus  was  lost  for  three  whole  days. 

Jesus  tarries  in  the  temple. — As  soon  as  the  feast 
was  over — three  or  four  days  after  the  Passover  supper 
had  been  eaten — Jesus'  parents  and  the  rest  of  the 
company  from  Nazareth  set  out  for  home.  Thinking 
that  Jesus  was  with  the  other  boys,  they  went  a  whole 
day's  journey,  till  they  camped  at  night  beyond  Jericho. 
Then,  to  their  amazement  and  alarm.  Jesus  was  no- 
where to  be  found.  What  could  have  separated  him 
from  the  company?  There  were  other  companies  of 
pilgrims  with  whom  he  might  be  traveling.  Could  he 
be  with  them? — No,  they  had  not  seen  him.  There 
was  no  tiling  to  do  but  to  go  back  and  search  for  him. 
"And  it  came  to  pass,"  Luke  says, 

"It  came  to  pass,  after  three  days  they  found  him 
in  the  temple,  sitting  in  the  midst  of  the  teachers, 
listening  to  them,  and  asking  them  questions.  And 
all  that  heard  him  were  amazed  at  his  understanding 
and  his  answers. 


A  VISIT  TO  JERUSALEM  ^9 

"His  parents  were  astonished  when  they  saw  him, 
and  his  mother  said,  'Child,  why  have  you  dealt  this 
way  with  us?  Your  father  and  I  have  sought  you 
sorrowing.'  But  he  replied,  *Why  were  you  looking 
for  me?  Did  you  not  faiow  I  must  be  in  my  Father's 
House?'  " — Luke  2 :  46-49. 

There  was  nothing  disrespectful  in  his  answer.  The 
time  had  passed  so  rapidly  that  he  did  not  realize  it; 
and  he  never  for  a  moment  supposed  they  would  look 
for  him  anywhere  else  than  in  the  temple.  For  his 
mother  had  long  ago  taught  him  that  this  was  his 
Father's  House — and  at  last  he  was  here! 

Home  again. — And  so  he  went  home  with  them  to 
Nazareth,  his  mother  and  Joseph  rejoicing  to  have  him 
back  again  safe  and  sound;  and  his  mother,  especially, 
remembering  his  words  about  "my  Father's  House." 
And  Jesus,  still  living  over  those  glorious  days  in  Jeru- 
salem, which  he  would  never  forget,  * 'advanced  in  wis- 
dom and  stature,  and  in  favor  with  God  and  man." 
(Luke  2:  52.) 

vSTUDY  TOPICS 

1.  Look  up  Psalm  114.     What  significance  had  this  as 

one  of  the  hymns  sung  at  the  Passover? 

2.  Turn  to  the  map  of  Jerusalem  and  find  the  point  from 

which  Jesus  first  looked  upon  the  city. 

3.  Find,  in  the  plan  of  the  temple,  the  court  in  which 

Mary  stood,  and  the  one  in  which  Joseph  and  Jesus 
worshiped. 

4.  Close  your  book,  and  sketch  in  outline  the  city  of 

Jerusalem.  On  which  side  was  the  temple?  Where 
was  the  Mount  of  Olives?  In  which  direction  was 
Jericho  ?    Gahlee  ? 

5.  Are  the  rules  for  the  temple  worship  to  be  found  any- 

where in  the  Bible?  If  so,  where  would  you  start 
to  look  for  them? 


40  THE  LIFE  AND  TIMES  OF  JESUS 

Remember  that  the  IsraeHtes  in  the  wilderness  had  no 
temple.  They  worshiped  in  the  tabernacle — a  great  tent 
which  they  carried  about  with  them.  But  the  laws  for 
sacrifice  and  worship  were  held  to  apply  to  the  temple  in 
the  time  of  Jesus. 


CHAPTER  V 
JOHN,  THE  SON  OF  ZACHARIAS 

There  was  another  boy  living  in  Palestine  at  that 
time  in  whom  we  are  greatly  interested — for  his  career 
was  destined  to  be  closely  related  to  that  of  Jesus.  This 
boy's  home  was  near  Jerusalem,  in  the  "hill  country" 
of  Judffia.  His  father  was  a  priest,  who  ministered  from 
time  to  time  in  the  temple  at  Jerusalem— very  possibly 
he  was  there  on  the  occasion  of  Jesus'  visit  at  the  age  of 
twelve.  The  boy's  name  was  John,  and  his  father  was 
Zacharias.  His  mother,  Elisabeth,  was  a  noble  woman, 
a  descendant  of  the  sacred  priestly  house  of  Aaron. 
With  such  parents,  and  living  in  such  a  home  as  theirs, 
it  is  not  strange  at  all  that  John  grew  up  to  be  a  good 
man  and  that  God  called  him  to  be  a  prophet. 

THE   BOY   JOHN 

The  beautiful  story  of  John's  birth  is  told  in  the  first 
chapter  of  Saint  Luke's  Gospel— how  an  angel  appeared 
to  his  father  in  the  temple,  announcing  that  he  should 
have  a  son,  whom  he  was  to  name  John;  how  Mary, 
the  mother  of  Jesus,  also  saw  an  angel  who  came  to 
announce  Jesus'  birth;  how  Mary  visited  Elisabeth,  and 
sang  the  Magnificat,  her  beautiful  hymn  of  thanksgiving; 
how  the  neighbors  and  friends  of  the  aged  priest  and  his 
wife  rejoiced  when  John  was  born;  how  the  neighbors 
wanted  to  name  the  baby  Zacharias,  after  his  father; 
all  this  wonderful  and  beautiful  story  you  must  read 
for  yourself,  if  you  have  not  read  it  already. 

A  child  of  promise. — Sometimes  fathers  and  mothers 

41 


42  THE  LIFE  AND  TIMES  OF  JESUS 

dedicate  their  children  to  God.  The  service  of  baptism 
is  one  way  in  which  they  are  given  to  God;  but  often 
they  are  dedicated  specially,  like  the  boy  Samuel  in  the 
Old  Testament  story,  and  given  to  God  for  His  service. 

This  is  what  Zacharias  and  Elisabeth  did  for  their 
son.  In  his  vision  in  the  temple  Zacharias  remembered 
having  heard  the  angel  say,  "He  shall  be  great  in  the 
sight  of  the  Lord,  .  .  .  and  he  shall  drink  no  wine  nor 
strong  drink  .  .  .  and  he  shall  be  filled  with  the  Holy 
Spirit  .  .  .  and  many  of  the  children  of  Israel  shall  he 
turn  unto  the  Lord  their  God." 

A  "Nazirite." — The  son  of  a  priest  was  expected  to 
live  a  holy  life— for  he  himself  would  be  a  priest  some 
time.  But  John's  parents  dedicated  him  to  a  life  of 
peculiar  holiness,  hke  that  of  the  Nazirites  (of  whom  we 
read  in  the  Old  Testament).  He  was  never  to  drink 
wine,  nor  cut  his  hair  or  shave  his  beard.  Of  course, 
this  would  not  make  him  holy;  but  it  set  him  apart 
from  other  men,  and  in  solitude  he  was  to  devote  his 
life  to  religion,  to  prayer  and  study  and  meditation. 
That  was  the  way,  so  those  people  thought,  in  which 
great  holiness  was  to  be  attained. 

Thus  John's  early  life  was  quite  different  from  that 
of  Jesus.  His  parents  were  much  older  than  most  boys' 
fathers  and  mothers.  His  home  was  in  the  rugged  hill- 
country  near  Jerusalem — unlike  the  region  round  about 
Nazareth;  and,  even  as  a  little  boy,  he  was  made  to  feel 
how  solemn  and  austere  a  life  must  be  his  when  he  grew 
to  be  a  man. 

His  father's  influence. — Still,  his  parents  were  not 
harsh  or  severe  in  their  religion.  They  were  just  good, 
old-fashioned  people  who  loved  their  boy  and  wanted 
him  to  be  the  best  man,  the  truest  servant  of  God, 
that  he  could  possibly  become. 


JOHN,  THE  SON  OF  ZACHARIAS  4.3 

The  fine  and  noble  spirit  of  his  father  may  be  seen  in 
the  hymn  which  he  composed  when  John  was  born.  It 
is  often  called  the  Benedictus,  from  the  first  word  of 
the  Latin  translation.  It  deserves  to  be  set  beside 
Mary's  hymn,  the  Magnificat,  which  we  read  in  Chap- 
ter II. 

The  Benedictus. — 

"Blessed  be  the  Lord,  the  God  of  Israel; 

For  He  hath  visited  and  redeemed  His  people, 
And  hath  raised  up  a  horn  of  salvation  for  us 
In  the  house  of  His  servant  David — 

(this  referred  to  the  birth  of  Jesus,  who  was  a  ''son  of 
David") 

"As  He  spake  by  the  mouth  of  His  holy  prophets, 
Which  have  been  since  the  world  began — 

Salvation  from  our  enemies, 
And  from  the  hand  of  all  that  hate  us; 

To  show  mercy  toward  our  forefathers. 
And  to  remember  His  holy  covenant; 

"The  oath    which  He    sware    unto  Abraham    our 
father, 
To  grant  imto  us  that  we. 
Being  delivered  from  the  hand  of  our  enemies, 

Might  serve  Him  without  fear, 
In  holiness  and  righteousness  before  Him, 
All  the  days  of  our  life. 

"And  thou,  child  (that  is,  John), 

Shalt  be  called  the  prophet  of  the  Highest; 
For  thou  Shalt  go  before  the  face  of  the  Lord, 

To  prepare  His  ways; 
To  give  knowledge  of  salvation  unto  His  people, 

In  the  remission  of  their  sins. 


44         THE  LIFE  AND  TIMES  OF  JESUS 

"Because  of  the  tender  mercy  of  our  God, 
Whereby  the  dayspring  from  on  high 
Shall  visit  us, 
To  shine  upon  them  that  sit  in  darkness 

And  the  shadow  of  death. 
To  guide  our  feet  into  the  way  of  peace." 

— ^Luke  1 :  68-79. 

CALLED   OF   GOD 

Nothing  more  is  told  us  about  John's  boyhood,  ex- 
cept the  following,  at  the  end  of  Chapter  I  of  Luke: 
"And  the  child  grew,  and  waxed  strong  in  spirit,  and 
was  in  the  deserts  till  the  day  of  his  showing  unto  Is- 
rael." The  word  "deserts"  means  the  open  country, 
John  was  not  a  city  boy,  nor  did  he  even  live  in  a  village, 
like  Nazareth.  He  was  a  country  boy  and  grew  up 
familiar  with  the  work  of  shepherds  and  woodcutters, 
with  the  sowing  and  harvesting  and  threshing  of  grain. 
For  thirty  years  he  lived  thus  quietly  and  obscurely, 
unknown  outside  his  own  neighborhood.  No  doubt  he 
went  up  from  time  to  time  to  the  temple  with  his  father 
— perhaps  taking  his  part  in  the  service  as  a  priest 
when  his  father  grew  too  old  to  officiate. 

John's  call  as  a  prophet. — But  when  John  was 
about  thirty  years  old,  "in  the  fifteenth  year  of  the 
reign  of  Tiberius  Caesar"  (28  or  29  A.  D.),  "the  word  of 
God  came  unto  him  in  the  wilderness."  This  means 
that  he  was  called  to  be  a  prophet. 

It  had  been  many  years,  in  fact  centuries,  since  a 
prophet  had  appeared  in  Israel.  The  people  had  begun 
to  feel  that  God  must  have  forsaken  them,  since  He 
sent  them  no  messenger  or  prophet.  But  now,  at  last, 
one  had  appeared,  and  at  once  the  news  spread  through 
the  country. 

John  began  his  preaching  in  the  Jordan  valley,  out  in 


JOHN,  THE  SON  OF  ZACHARIAS  45 

the  open  country.  Like  the  ancient  prophet  Elijah,  he 
wore  a  mantle  of  camel's  hair,  with  a  leather  girdle  or 
belt  about  the  waist.  And  his  food  was  the  simple  fare  of 
the  desert,  locusts  (or  carobs)  and  wild  honey.  As  a 
Nazirite,  he  let  liis  hair  grow  long  and  drank  no  wine. 
Thus  even  his  outward  appearance  reminded  people  of 
the  Old  Testament  prophets. 

His  message. — Just  as  in  the  Old  Testament  times, 
a  prophet  was  one  sent  by  God  to  deliver  a  message. 
John's  message  can  be  summed  up  in  one  word:  Repent. 
He  felt  himself  to  be  the  one  described  in  the  Book  of 
Isaiah : 

"The  voice  of  one  crying  in  the  wilderness, 
'Prepare  ye  the  way  of  the  Lord, 
Make  straight  in  the  desert 
A  highway  for  our  God.'  " — Isaiah  40:  3. 

The  Jewish  people  at  that  time  were  expecting  a 
change  to  take  place  in  the  world.  God  was  to  send 
them  a  great  Deliverer,  the  King  ''Messiah"  or  Anointed 
One,  who  should  free  them  from  the  rule  of  the  Romans, 
and  set  up  an  independent  kingdom  in  Palestine.  Then 
all  the  descendants  of  Jacob  were  to  be  gathered  home  to 
their  native  land ;  and  in  peace  and  prosperity  they  should 
dwell  there  forever,  under  the  reign  or  kingdom  of  God. 

But  John  said  to  them:  "You  are  not  fit  to  enter  this 
Kingdom  of  God.  You  must  repent  of  your  sins  and 
bring  forth  worthy  fruits.  Mere  descent  from  Abraham 
doesn't  count:  you  must  actually  do  the  will  of  God, 
obediently  and  faithfully,  if  you  expect  Him  to  send 
you  the  Messiah  to  be  your  deUverer." 

What  did  this  mean?  People  came  to  him  and  asked 
what  it  meant,  and  what  they  must  do  to  please  God; 
and  he  told  them:  "Whoever  has  two  coats,  let  him 


46  THE  LIFE  AND  TIMES  OF  JESUS 

give  one  to  his  poor  neighbor  who  has  none.  Whoever 
has  food  to  spare,  let  him  do  the  same."  The  tax- 
gatherers  came,  and  he  said  to  them,  ''Stop  collecting 
more  than  is  fair  from  the  people."  And  to  the  soldiers 
he  said,  ''Don't  be  violent;  stop  accusing  innocent  peo- 
ple of  crimes;  and  be  content  with  your  wages." 

"The  baptism  of  repentance." — Great  crowds  of 
people,  from  Jerusalem  and  Judaea  and  all  the  region 
round  about  the  Jordan  River,  went  out  to  hear  John 
as  he  traveled,  preaching,  up  and  down  the  country. 
And  whenever  there  were  those  who  did  repent  and 
confessed  their  sins,  and  wanted  to  begin  a  new  Hfe, 
John  administered  to  them  the  "baptism  of  repentance." 
.They  were  taken  to  the  river  or  to  some  nearby  stream, 
and  there,  in  John's  presence,  plunged  beneath  the 
waters.  This  outward  washing  was  the  symbol  and 
token  of  the  inward  cleansing  of  their  souls.  Now  they 
could  begin  afresh,  in  newness  of  life,  to  serve  God  and 
prepare  for  the  coming  of  His  Kingdom.  But  they  must 
not  forget  to  bring  forth  fruits  "worthy  of  repentance," 
to  be  honest  and  gentle  and  generous. 

"Is  John  himself  the  Messiah?" — This  question 
rose  naturally  to  the  lips  of  those  who  heard  the  prophet 
and  who  wondered  where  and  when  the  Messiah  should 
appear. 

"And  as  the  people  were  in  expectation,  and  all 
men  mused  in  their  hearts  concerning  John,  whether 
haply  he  were  the  Messiah,  John  answered,  and 
said  to  them  all,  *I  indeed  baptize  you  with  water; 
but  there  comes  one  who  is  mightier  than  I — so 
much  mightier,  in  fact,  that  I  am  not  worthy  even 
to  stoop  and  loose  his  sandal's  thong!  He  shall 
baptize  you  with  the  Holy  Spirit  and  with  fire.  His 
fan  is  in  his  hand,  thoroughly  to  cleanse  his  thresh- 


JOHN,  THE  SON  OF  ZACHARIAS  47 

ing-floor,  and  to  gather  the  wheat  into  his  granary. 
But  the  chaff  he  will  bum  with  unquenchable  fire !'  " 
—Luke  3:  15-17- 

The  Messiah  was  coming  to  hold  the  judgment!  The 
righteous  were  to  enter  God's  Kingdom  and  be  saved; 
but  the  wicked  were  to  be  cast  out  and  be  punished! 
This  was  not  quite  what  the  people  were  expecting. 
To  them  it  had  seemed  that  God  would  do  everything. 
But  John  made  it  clear  that  there  was  much  indeed 
for  them  to  do. 

STUDY  TOPICS 

1.  Read  Chapter  i  of  Luke. 

2.  Look  up  "Nazirites,"  Numbers  6. 

3.  Find  on  the  map  the  "hill  country  of  Judaea."     It  is 

not  named,  but  you  can  locate  it  from  the  shading 
on  the  map. 

4.  Some  of  the  Psalms  are  called  "Messianic,"  since  they 

describe  the  coming  of  the  expected  Messiah.    Look 
up  the  following:  Psalms  2,  21,  72,  no. 

5.  What  did  John  command  the  publicans  and  soldiers 

to  do? 

6.  Memorize  Isaiah  40:3. 


CHAPTER  VI 
THE  BAPTISM  OF  JESUS 

The  news  of  John's  preaching  spread  rapidly.  Not 
only  throughout  Judaea  and  the  Jordan  valley,  but  up 
in  Galilee,  in  the  villages  around  the  lake  and  in  the 
hills,  people  were  talking  about  the  great  prophet  who 
had  appeared.  Men  made  a  journey  to  Jerusalem  the 
occasion  for  going  to  hear  John.  Groups  of  young  men 
went  down  the  valley  to  the  place  where  John  was 
preaching,  and  came  back  with  accounts  of  his  message, 
of  the  listening  crowds,  of  the  cries  of  the  penitents  as 
they  went  forward  to  share  in  the  simple  ceremony  of 
cleansing. 

But  it  was  his  words  about  the  Messiah  which  trav- 
eled faster  than  everything  else :  there  was  not  a  person 
in  all  Palestine  who  could  hear  that  message  and  not 
be  interested  at  once. 

THE   HOPE    OF   THE   MESSIAH 

The  expectation  of  the  Messiah  was  nothing  new  in 
Israel.  For  several  centuries,  especially  since  the  Baby- 
lonian exile,  it  had  seemed  that  the  only  hope  of  free- 
dom and  independence  lay  in  God's  hands.  When  He 
willed  it  the  change  would  come.  God  would  "take 
His  great  power  and  reign"  over  them;  God  Himself 
should  be  their  King,  and  they  should  be  His  people. 

The  coming  Kingdom. — This  was  to  be  "the  King- 
dom of  God."  No  longer  were  foreign  rulers,  With  their 
armies  and  their  false  gods  and  their  shameful  customs, 
to  have  dominion  over  God's  people.  The  kings  of 
Babylon,  Egypt,  Persia,  Macedonia,  with  their  hosts  of 


THE  BAPTISM  OF  JESUS  49 

warriors,  had  once  swept  over  Palestine,  and  crushed  the 
little  armies  of  her  defenders.  But  one  by  one  they  had 
fallen.  Now  Rome  ruled  the  world.  But  it  would  not 
be  long  until  Rome  too  should  fall.  Then,  surely  then, 
God  would  Himself  take  the  scepter,  or,  what  meant  the 
same  thing,  send  his  ''Anointed"  to  rule  in  His  stead 
• — and  the  Jewish  people  would  be  saved. 

The  coining  King.— Now  most  persons  thought  that 
the  Messiah,  the  "Anointed,"  when  he  came,  would  be 
an  earthly  ruler;  he  would  be  inspired  by  God,  perfectly 
obedient  to  His  will,  but  would  reign  in  Jerusalem  just 
like  David  or  Solomon  or  any  of  the  ancient  kings. 
There  are  some  old  hymns,  called  "the  Psalms  of  the 
Pharisees,"  written  about  fifty  years  before  Jesus  was 
born,  which  express  this  hope  in  stirring  words.  Here 
is  a  part  of  one  of  them : 

"Behold,  O  Lord,  and  raise  up  over  them  their  king, 
the  Son  of  David, 
That  he  may  reign  over  Israel  Thy  servant; 
And  gird  him  with  strength,  that  he  may  shatter 

imrighteous  rulers, 
And  that  he  may  purge  Jerusalem  from  the  nations 
that  trample  her  down  to  destruction." 

— Psalms  of  the  Pharisees  17:  23-25. 

He  would  also  judge  his  own  people  and  banish  sinners 
from  the  Holy  City. 

"He  shall  not  allow  unrighteousness  to  lodge  any 
more  in  their  midst. 
Nor  shall  there  dwell  among  them  any  man  that 

knows  wickedness;  .  .  . 
For  he  shall  know  them  that  they  are  all  sons  of 
their  God." 

— Ibid.,  17:  29,  30,  36. 


so  THE  LIFE  AND  TIMES  OF  JESUS 

Revolution,  or  patience? — People  were  tired  of  the 
Roman  rule,  as  they  had  been  tired  of  the  Maccabees 
and  of  Herod.  They  longed  for  the  coming  of  this  King 
of  their  own,  the  "Son  of  David,"  the  Messiah,  or 
"Christ."  And  some  men  there  were  who  stood 
ready  at  a  moment's  notice  to  grasp  the  sword 
and  start  a  revolution.  It  was  the  mad  scheme  of 
these  "Zealots,"  as  they  were  called,  to  overthrow 
the  Roman  government  in  Palestine,  as  Judas  the 
Maccabee  had  once  overthrown  that  of  the  kingdom 
of  Antioch. 

But  not  all  the  Jews  were  Zealots.  Nor  were  all  the 
Pharisees  like  those  who  wrote  or  who  treasured  the 
'' Psalms  of  the  Pharisees."  There  were  some  who  said, 
"Until  all  Israel  keeps  the  Law  perfectly  from  one  Sab- 
bath to  the  next,  the  Messiah  cannot  come."  This  was 
somewhat  more  like  John's  teaching:  the  Kingdom  of 
God  would  not  appear  until  the  nation  repented  and 
brought  forth  the  fruits  of  righteousness. 

"The  Son  of  Man." — And  these  people  thought  of 
the  Messiah,  not  as  a  warrior  and  king,  but  as  the  divine 
judge,  who  should  trj-^  the  deeds  and  the  hearts  of  men 
and  reward  them  either  with  happiness  and  salvation  or 
with  pain  and  misery.  They  read  the  vision  of  Daniel, 
in  the  Old  Testament,  and  understood  it  as  a  picture  of 
the  Messiah. 

"I  beheld  till  thrones  were  cast  down  and  one 
that  was  Ancient  of  Days  did  sit:  his  raiment  was 
white  as  snow,  and  the  hair  of  his  head  was  like 
fine  wool;  his  throne  was  fiery  flames,  and  the 
wheels  thereof  burning  fire.  .  .  .  And  behold,  there 
came  with  the  clouds  of  heaven  one  like  imto  a  Son 
of  Man,  and  he  came  even  to  the  Ancient  of  Days. 
.  »  .  And  there  was  given  him  dominion  and  glory 


THE  BAPTISM  OF  JESUS  51 

and    a    kingdom,    that    all  peoples  should  serve 
him." — Daniel  7:9-14. 

And  so  they  called  the  Messiah  by  a  special  name, 
"the  Son  of  Man."  We  shall  find  this  name  very  often 
in  the  New  Testament,  and  so  we  ought  to  know  what 
it  means:  It  refers  to  the  Messiah  expected  by  those 
who  did  not  believe  in  revolution  or  rebellion  against 
Rome;  they  believed  that  he  was  to  be  the  judge  of 
men's  souls  at  the  last  judgment;  and  that  his  kingdom 
was  not  to  be  in  Palestine  or  anywhere  in  this  world, 
but  in  heaven,  in  the  world  to  come. 

There  is  a  very  curious  old  book,  called  "the  Book  of 
Enoch,"  which  Jesus  may  possibly  have  read  and  which 
describes  this  kind  of  Messiah.  Let  us  read  just  a  few 
lines  of  it. 

"And  he  sat  on  his  throne  of  glory, 
And  all  judgment  was  given  unto  the  Son  of  Man; 
And  he  caused  the  sinners  to  pass  away  from  the 

face  of  the  earth, 
And  those  who  had  led  the  world  astray." 

— ^I  Enoch  69:  27. 

Thus  there  were  several  different  ways  in  which  the 
Kingdom  of  God  and  the  Messiah  were  expected  in 
Jesus'  time.  John  evidently  did  not  expect  him  to  be 
an  earthly  warrior  or  king,  but  the  heavenly  "Son  of 
Man." 

THE   BAPTISM   OF   JESUS 

And  so  the  news  spread  that  John  announced  the 
coming  of  the  Messiah.  At  last,  after  all  these  years,  a 
prophet!  At  last,  a  prophet  who  was  himself  the  Mes- 
siah's herald!  Such  a  message  had  not  been  heard  for 
generations — no,  it  had  never  been  heard  before. 


52  THE  LIFE  AND  TIMES  OF  JESUS 

Jesus  goes  to  hear  John. — Jesus  was  working  in  the 
carpenter  shop  when  the  news  came.  He  was  alone  in 
the  shop  now — for  Joseph  had  died  some  years  before, 
leaving  Jesus  as  head  of  the  family.  Like  John,  he  was 
now  about  thirty  years  old;  the  younger  members  of 
the  family  were  grown  up.  He  was  therefore  free  to  go 
and  take  part  in  John's  work.  And  he  felt  that  he  could 
not  remain  aloof  from  this  great  movement  which  was 
sweeping  the  nation.  He  must  have  some  share  in  it: 
it  was  his  Father's  business. 

His  baptism. — So  he  went  down  the  Jordan  val- 
ley, heard  the  prophet,  and  received  his  baptism.  For 
this  was  the  first  thing  to  do,  if  he  was  to  share  in  the 
preparation  for  the  coming  of  the  Messiah:  he  must 
do  everytliing  which  God  had  showed  to  be  His  will, 
either  in  the  Bible  or  through  His  prophet.  Who  the 
Messiah  should  be  no  one  could  tell,  but  everyone  must 
make  ready  for  his  coming,  in  obedience  to  God's 
command. 

The  vision  and  the  Voice  from  heaven. — A  won- 
derful event  occurred  when  Jesus  was  baptized.  For  it 
came  to  pass  that  as  he  came  up  out  of  the  water  and 
knelt  down  to  pray,  he  beheld  a  vision:  the  heaven  was 
opened,  and  he  saw  the  Spirit  of  God— whose  coming 
John  had  foretold — ^descending  as  a  dove  and  resting 
upon  himself;  then  a  voice  came  forth  from  heaven  and 
said,  "Thou  art  my  beloved  Son;  in  Thee  I  am  well 
pleased." 

The  beloved  Son! — that  was  the  name  which  had 
been  given  the  Messiah! — the  "Son  of  Man,"  God's 
Son,  the  one  who  was  to  stand  before  the  Ancient  of 
Days.  Not  John,  not  some  angeHc  being  still  unseen, 
but  Jesus  himself  was  the  Messiah! 

Can  you  imagine  what  a  wonderful  feeling  came  over 


THE  BAPTISM  OF  JESUS  53 

Jesus  as  he  saw  this  vision  and  heard  these  words? 
What  deep  joy,  what  a  sense  of  responsibility,  what 
a  supreme  exultation  it  gave  him!  He  could  not  go 
home  now;  nor  could  he  stay  there  with  John  and  the 
multitude;  he  must  get  away  and  be  alone  with  God. 
So  straightway  he  went  up  from  the  river,  away  from 
the  crowd,  avoiding  the  highways  and  villages,  into  the 
lonely  wilderness  of  Judaea  where  he  could  commune 
with  his  Father  in  solitude. 

STUDY  TOPICS 

1.  What  is  a  vision?    Name  several  persons  in  the  Bible 

who  are  described  as  having  seen  visions. 

2.  Why  did  Jesus  wish  to  be  alone  for  a  time  after  his 

baptism  ? 

3.  Describe  briefly  the  Jewish  expectation  of  the  Messiah. 

4.  What  was  the  significance  of  the  title,  "the  Beloved 

Son"? 

5.  Why  was  the  Messiah  called  "the  Son  of  David"? 

6.  Who  were  the  Zealots?    What  did  they  expect  to  do? 

7.  Form  as  completely  as  you  can  a  picture  of  the  bap- 

tism of  Jesus,  and  then  write  a  description  of  it. 


CHAPTER  VII 
IN  THE  WILDERNESS 

The  "wilderness"  into  which  Jesus  went  was  not  a 
sandy  desert,  but  thinly  populated,  open  country, 
northwest  of  the  Dead  Sea,  where  were  no  farms  and 
only  wandering  shepherds  guarded  their  flocks.  The 
ground  was  stony,  as  you  may  see  in  the  picture,  and 
one  might  go  several  miles  without  meeting  another 
person. 

THE   TEMPTATION 

Here  Jesus  remained  for  several  weeks — the  Gospels 
say  "forty  days,"  as  if  the  writers  thought  of  the  forty 
years  spent  in  the  wilderness  by  the  children  of  Israel 
in  the  time  of  Moses.  Of  course,  there  was  little  to  eat 
in  such  a  place.  And  so,  like  Elijah  of  old,  he  fasted; 
"he  did  eat  nothing  in  those  days." 

What  he  was  thinking  about. — He  had  come  out 
into  the  wilderness  in  order  to  be  alone  with  God  and 
to  think  about  the  vision  he  had  seen  at  his  baptism. 
What  was  he  thinking  about?  It  had  come  to  him  so 
suddenly.  Like  everyone  else,  he  had  been  expecting 
the  coming  of  the  Messiah;  he  had  read  of  him  in  the 
books  of  the  prophets  in  the  Old  Testament;  he  had 
heard  John  describe  the  Messiah  in  glowing  words, 
"...  whose  fan  is  in  his  hand,  and  he  will  thoroughly 
cleanse  his  threshing-floor  .  .  ."  And  then  all  at  once 
he  had  seen  the  opened  heaven,  and  the  descending 
dove,  and  heard  the  words,  "Thou  art  my  Son." 

No  words  of  prophet  or  seer,  of  Isaiah  or  Daniel  or 
Enoch,  or  of  John  himself,  seemed  to  make  it  clear.    If 

54 


THE    TEMPTATIUA    i.N     nit.     W  lLUt,K.N  tNS 

From  Sanday's  Life  of  Christ  in  Recent  Research.     Copyright,  University  Press, 
American  Branch.     Used  by  permission. 


IN  THE  WILDERNESS  55 

he  was  to  be  the  Messiah  he  must  be  a  dififerent  kind 
of  Messiah  than  anyone  had  ever  expected.  He  would 
not  be  a  king  or  warrior,  leading  an  army  or  ascending 
a  throne  in  Jerusalem;  that  was  not  the  way  in  which 
God's  Kingdom  should  be  established.  Nor  was  he  the 
Son  of  Man  standing  before  the  Ancient  of  Days— not 
yel,  certainly.  What  should  he  do  first  of  all?  What 
did  God  want  him  to  do?  He  would  wait  for  the  answer 
of  God  Himself.  For  it  was  the  voice  of  God  which  had 
said  to  Him,  "Thou  art  my  Son,"  and  he  would  wait 
until  God  led  him,  by  the  Spirit,  to  begin  his  work  as 
Messiah. 

Stones  and  bread. — As  he  waited  he  hungered.  It 
was  not  many  miles  to  some  village  where  he  could  get 
food.  But  no,  he  had  come  hither  for  a  purpose,  and 
mere  hunger  of  the  body  was  not  to  daunt  him. 

The  stones  lying  about  on  the  ground  looked  some- 
what like  small  loaves  of  bread.  And  there  came  secret 
whisperings  which  seemed  to  say,  'Tf  you  are  the  Son 
of  God,  command  these  stones  to  become  bread— do 
not  perish  here  of  hunger,  when  you  can  easily  work  a 
miracle  and  enjoy  plenty."  It  was  the  voice  of  the 
tempter,  the  spirit  of  disobedience,  who  stands  some  time 
or  other  at  everyone's  side,  and  bids  him  do  what  is  not 
lawful  and  right,  bids  him  set  his  own  desires  above  the 
will  of  God. 

Jesus  recognized  that  to  yield  to  this  temptation  would 
be  sin.  It  meant  that  he  would  be  using  his  powers,  as 
Messiah,  for  his  own  safety  and  welfare,  and  not  for  the 
good  of  his  people.  And  did  not  the  Scripture  say, 
"Man  shall  not  live  by  bread  alone,  but  by  every  word 
that  goes  forth  from  the  mouth  of  God"? 

The  kingdoms  of  the  world.— But  if  he  will  not 
use   his    divine   powers    to^  save    himself,  perhaps   he 


56  THE  LIFE  AND  TIMES  OF  JESUS 

will  use  them  to  fulfill  the  hopes  of  those  who  want  a 
king? 

It  seemed  to  him  that  he  was  now  standing  on  the 
summit  of  a  mountain — higher  than  Carmel  or  Hermon 
— a  mountain  so  high  he  could  see  all  the  kingdoms  of 
the  world.  There  in  the  west  lay  Macedon  and  Greece, 
and  beyond  them  Italy,  Sicily,  Carthage;  far  to  the 
north  lay  Asia  and  Armenia,  Scythia,  and  the  rich  re- 
gions of  Syria  and  Mesopotamia;  eastward  lay  Babylon 
and  Media  and  far-off  India,  with  their  strange  peoples 
and  crowded  cities;  to  the  south,  Arabia  with  its  war- 
riors of  the  desert  and  ancient  Egypt  with  its  pyramids 
and  temples  and  its  teeming  multitudes.  Prophets  had 
said  that  Messiah  should  rule  all  the  nations  of  the 
world.  Was  he  then  to  become  a  greater  king  than 
Caesar,  whose  soldiers  marched  everywhere  in  the  world? 

But  earthly  kingdoms  were  built  up  through  blood- 
shed, through  wars  and  intrigues  and  deceptions.  It 
was  unthinkable  that  he  should  aspire  to  be  such  a 
king,  even  though  he  were  to  be  a  good  ruler,  the  "king 
of  righteousness." 

Once  more  it  was  the  voice  of  Satan,  now  saying  to 
him,  "To  thee  will  I  give  all  this  authority  and  the 
glory  of  these  kingdoms;  for  it  is  mine,  and  to  whomso- 
ever I  will,  I  give  it.  Worship  me — obey  my  will- 
adopt  my  methods— and  all  shall  be  yours!"  But  Jesus 
answered  and  said,  again  using  the  words  of  the  Bible, 
"Thou  shalt  worship  the  Lord  thy  God,  and  Him  only 
shalt  thou  serve." 

The  pinnacle  of  the  temple. — But  how,  then,  were 
people  to  recognize  him  as  Messiah?  How  was  he  to 
let  them  know? 

The  prophet  Malachi  had  said,  and  everyone  sup- 
posed he  referred  to  the  Messiah,  "The  Lord,  whom  ye 


IN  THE  WILDERNESS  57 

seek,  shall  suddenly  come  to  His  temple"  (Malachi 
3:1).  Where  else  ought  they  to  look  for  the  approach 
of  their  Deliverer?  Might  he  not  appear  before  the 
assembled  people  in  the  temple,  and  proclaim  himself 
as  the  Messiah,  and  ask  them  to  accept  him  at  once? 

He  seemed  now  to  be  standing  on  the  very  pinnacle 
of  the  temple — the  lofty  tower  above  the  sanctuary, 
overlooking  its  very  entrance,  high  above  the  altar  of 
sacrifice.  Long  ago,  when  he  saw  it  for  the  first  time, 
it  had  seemed  so  high  it  reached  almost  to  heaven.  Up 
there,  one  could  almost  touch  the  clouds  or  hear  the 
voices  of  the  angels  singing  about  the  throne  of  God. 
Now  he  seemed  to  be  standing  there.  Far  below,  in 
the  Courts  of  the  Men  of  Israel  and  of  the  Women  and 
of  the  Gentiles,  gathered  the  crowds  of  worshipers. 

Might  he  not  leap  off  the  pinnacle,  and  glide  gently 
down  into  their  midst,  as  the  Messiah  "come  suddenly 
to  his  temple"?  Would  not  the  angels  guard  him  from 
falling?  It  was  written,  "He  shall  give  His  angels 
charge  over  thee,  to  guard  thee,"  and  "On  their  hands 
they  shall  bear  thee  up,  lest  thou  dash  thy  foot  against 
a  stone."  But  no!  It  was  also  written,  "Thou  shalt  not 
make  trial  of  the  Lord  thy  God."  This  would  only 
be  putting  God  to  the  test,  to  see  if  He  really  would 
make  good  the  promise  and  save  him  from  injury. 

His  resolve. — Thus  he  did  not  know  how  he  was  to 
be  manifested  as  Messiah.  But  in  fact  that  was  not 
his  problem.  It  belonged  to  God.  His  duty  was  to  do 
the  work  which  lay  nearest  at  hand — to  carry  on  the 
teaching  of  John,  to  spread  the  message  of  repentance 
and  preparation  for  the  coming  Kingdom.  Then,  in 
His  own  good  time,  the  Father  would  make  him  known. 
When  the  hour  came  in  which  God  wanted  men  to  know 
that  he  was  Messiah,  when  the  time  came  in  which  he 


58  THE  LIFE  AND  TIMES  OF  JESUS 

should  be  brought  before  the  Ancient  of  Days  as  the 
Son  of  Man  in  glory,  then  the  Father  Himself  would 
make  him  known. 

JESUS'   VICTORY 

All  these  other  ways  were  but  idle  dreams.  Each 
time  the  method  was  wrong.  Even  though  his  people 
expected  the  Messiah  to  come  in  such  ways,  he  would 
not  be  the  kind  of  a  Messiah  the  tempter  suggested. 
There  was  only  one  way  for  him,  and  that  was  humbly 
to  follow  the  guidance  of  God.  From  day  to  day,  with- 
out asking  why,  he  would  follow  the  path  which  lay 
before  him  in  lowliness  and  obedience  and  faith. 

Obedience  and  faith. — Do  you  realize  that  Jesus 
was  setting  out  to  do  what  no  one  at  that  time  expected 
the  Messiah  to  do?  No  one  who  heard  John  preach,  or 
who  read  the  Old  Testament  and  other  religious  books, 
supposed  that  the  Messiah  would  begin  his  work  as  a 
humble  teacher,  going  about  from  village  to  village  in 
Galilee  with  a  message  like  that  of  Jesus. 

In  refusing  to  carry  out  the  plans  of  others  and  to 
realize  their  dreams  of  a  King  Messiah,  an  earthly  war- 
rior and  ruler,  what  do  you  suppose  guided  Jesus  in  his 
choice?  It  was  his  faith  in  God.  For  he  believed  that 
God  knew  what  was  best,  and  that  He  would  do  all 
things  well;  and  so  Jesus  could  leave  everything  in  his 
Father's  hands.  It  was  also  his  obedience  to  God  which 
guided  him  in  this  choice — the  same  obedience  he  had 
learned  as  a  boy  in  Nazareth,  and  which  had  made  him 
the  wonderful  Man  he  was.  And  it  was  also  his  knowl- 
edge of  God.  Whenever  the  suggesting  temptation 
arose,  immediately  he  knew  the  answer  to  it.  For  years 
he  had  studied  the  Bible  and  was  perfectly  familiar  with 
it.     He  knew  so  well  what  it  told  about  God  that  the 


IN  THE  WILDERNESS  59 

answer  to  temptation  came  into  his  mind  at  once,  in 
the  very  words  of  the  Scripture.  Faith,  obedience, 
knowledge — these  were  his  weapons  in  the  contest. 

How  he  would  begin  his  ministry. — The  period  of 
trial  was  now  over,  and  the  tempter  left  him  "for  a 
season."  Temptation  might  come  again,  but  never  in 
this  form.  He  had  settled  once  and  for  all  these  ques- 
tions. Nothing  could  afterwards  swerve  him  from  his 
course.  It  might  mean  shame  and  suffering;  he  might 
be  misunderstood,  perhaps  rejected;  but  that  did  not 
matter,  since  this  was  God's  will  for  him.  He  had  made 
his  choice  and  he  would  hold  firmly  to  it  to  the  end. 
He  was  already  winning  the  victory  over  Satan! 

STUDY  TOPICS 

1.  Read  Luke  4: 1-13. 

2.  Tell  the  story  of  Jesus'  temptation  and  explain  the 

three  suggestions  of  the  tempter. 

3.  Jesus  was  "tempted  in  all  points  like  as  we  are."    This 

means  that  he  had  no  help  for  the  meeting  of  temp- 
tation which  is  not  available  to  each  of  us.  Wh£;.t 
lesson  should  this  teach  us  about  meeting  our 
temptations  ? 

4.  How  did  knowing  the  Bible  help  Jesus  in  overcoming 

temptation  ? 

5.  Point  out  the  difference  between  the  Messiah  as  peo- 

ple expected  him,  and  the  Messiah  as  Jesus  intended 
to  fulfill  the  expectation. 


CHAPTER  VIII 

BEGINNING  HIS  MINISTRY 

After  his  baptism  Jesus  was  "led  by  the  Holy 
Spirit."  And  his  first  work  for  God  was  to  preach  and 
teach  and  carry  on  the  mission  of  John. 

JESUS   RETURNS   TO   GALILEE 

For  some  time,  perhaps,  he  remained  with  John, 
sharing  his  work  and  teaching  the  disciples  of  the 
prophet.  These  disciples  of  John  were  the  most  earnest 
people  in  the  whole  nation.  In  heeding  the  prophet's 
message,  and  receiving  his  baptism,  they  had  showed 
themselves  ready  and  willing  to  prepare  for  the  coming 
of  God's  Kingdom. 

John  in  prison. — Not  all  of  the  people,  however, 
were  numbered  among  John's  followers.  There  were 
haughty  Pharisees  who  indignantly  refused  to  accept 
the  message  of  this  country  preacher.  They  felt  no 
need  of  baptism  themselves.  The  call  to  repentance 
was  meant  for  sinners — and  they  were  sure  that  they 
were  not  sinners.  John  had  even  called  them  "a  brood 
of  vipers":  and  this  had  completely  antagonized  theni. 

Herod  Antipas,  the  tetrarch  of  Gahlee  and  Perea,  was 
another  who  had  taken  offense.  John  boldly  rebuked 
him  for  marrying  his  brother  Philip's  divorced  wife. 
This  was  contrary  to  the  Law  of  God,  and  John  had 
been  brave  enough  to  say  so.  But  instead  of  heeding 
the  rebuke  and  repenting  of  his  sins,  Antipas  sent  his 
soldiers  and  cast  John  into  prison.  No  doubt  the 
Pharisees,  who  scorned  this  rustic  prophet,  now  re- 
joiced at  his  downfall. 

60 


BEGINNING  HIS  MINISTRY  6i 

John's  disciples  carry  on  his  work. — Thus 
John's  own  ministry  was  ended,  but  his  work  went  on. 
While  he  lay  in  a  dungeon  of  the  fortress  Macherus, 
east  of  the  Dead  Sea,  his  disciples  continued  to  preach 
and  baptize.  They  were  allowed  to  visit  their  master 
and  to  receive  messages  from  him.  The  tetrarch  had 
imprisoned  the  prophet  in  a  lit  of  anger,  and  did  not 
dare  to  injure  him  further.  Like  most  tyrants,  he  was 
really  a  coward.  He  was  himself  afraid  of  John,  and 
still  more  afraid  that  Herodias,  his  unlawful  wife,  might 
put  John  out  of  the  way.  This  might  cause  an  outbreak 
among  the  people.  So  he  "kept  him  safe,"  as  he  said, 
in  prison.  And  after  all,  John  might  be  a  man  inspired, 
a  prophet  sent  by  God. 

Jesus  returns  to  Gedilee.^When  Jesus  heard  that 
John  was  in  prison,  he  withdrew  into  Galilee  (Matthew 
4:  12).  Although  many  of  John's  followers  were  GaH- 
leans,  the  prophet  himself  had  never  visited  Galilee. 
But  it  was  Jesus'  own  country,  in  which  he  had  grown 
to  manhood.  It  was  perfectly  natural  that  he  should 
go  there  to  begin  his  own  ministry. 

In  the  synagogues.— Like  Nazareth,  every  other 
town  and  village  in  Galilee  had  its  synagogue.  Wherever 
there  were  ten  Jewish  families  in  the  neighborhood  a 
synagogue  was  built.  If  they  had  no  rabbi  to  hold  the 
services  and  preach  on  the  Sabbath,  and  conduct  the 
village  school  during  the  week,  then  one  of  the  older 
men  was  made  "ruler  of  the  synagogue"  and  led  the 
worship,  and  the  boys  studied  at  home.  In  such  vil- 
lages a  traveling  rabbi  was  cordially  welcomed  and 
invited  to  preach  on  the  Sabbath.  But  if  no  rabbi  was 
present,  any  man  famiHar  with  the  Bible  and  able  to 
explain  it  was  welcomed  and  asked  to  take  part  in  the 
service. 


62  THE  LIFE  AND  TIMES  OF  JESUS 


HIS   MESSAGE 

So  when  Jesus  went  round  about  all  Galilee,  teaching 
in  the  synagogues,  this  is  what  he  did:  he  accepted  the 
ruler's  invitation  to  read  and  expound  the  Scripture  in 
the  service  on  the  Sabbath  day.  He  was  welcomed 
everywhere  and  praised  by  all  who  heard  him.  His 
fame  soon  began  to  spread  throughout  Galilee  and  the 
regions  beyond,  and  into  all  parts  of  Syria. 

The  subject  of  his  teaching. — The  people  knew  that 
Jesus  was  carrying  on  the  work  of  the  imprisoned 
prophet.  They  looked  upon  Antipas  as  a  tyrant  and 
they  hated  him.  When  they  heard  of  his  treatment  of 
John,  they  hoped  it  would  not  be  long  now  until  the 
judgment  of  God  should  take  place,  and  the  tetrarch 
receive  his  just  punishment. 

All  who  had  heard  John  welcomed  Jesus.  For  his  mes- 
sage, at  first,  was  the  same  as  John's:  "Repent,  for  the 
Kingdom  of  heaven  is  at  hand."  Before  the  Kingdom 
could  come  to  pass,  before  God  could  truly  reign  over 
the  world,  or  send  His  Messiah,  men's  hearts  must  be 
changed.  They  must  be  converted,  their  minds  and 
desires  turned  about,  they  must  face  in  another  direc- 
tion! They  must  seek  the  Kingdom  of  God  and  prepare 
to  enter  it. 

Differences  between  Jesus  and  John. — Although 
Jesus'  message  was  the  same,  his  manner  was  quite  dif- 
ferent. John  did  not  care  if  he  offended  his  hearers. 
He  was  the  prophet  of  judgment;  he  was  the  "voice  of 
one  crying  in  the  wilderness,  Prepare  ye  the  way  of  the 
Lord."  So  terrible  did  the  coming  judgment  appear  to 
him  that  he  used  every  means  to  urge  his  hearers  to 
repentance. 

But  Jesus,  on  the  other  hand,  spoke  with  a  charm 


BEGINNING  HIS  MINISTRY  63 

which  drew  people  to  him  in  love;  he  won  the  hearts  of 
his  hearers.  He  spoke  to  them  of  God's  love  and  care 
for  them,  rather  than  of  God's  threats  against  the  un- 
repentant. He  did  not  avoid  the  crowds  and  preach  in 
the  wilderness;  he  visited  the  cities,  he  taught  in  the 
synagogues,  he  lived  close  to  the  people.  Nor  did  he 
wear  a  prophet's  hairy  mantle,  like  John— his  apparel 
was  simple,  like  that  of  his  neighbors,  a  seamless  robe 
which  his  mother  had  weaved  for  him  at  home. 

Where  and  how  he  taught. — Thus  wherever  Jesus 
went  people  crowded  about  him.  On  Sabbaths  he 
taught  in  the  synagogues.  After  the  service  people 
invited  him  to  their  homes  to  share  their  Sabbath 
meal.  On  weekdays  he  taught  little  groups  of  people 
in  their  houses,  or  walked  with  them  along  the  road, 
or  sat  on  some  hillside,  or  visited  the  fishermen  on  the 
shores  of  the  lake. 

Such  a  quiet  way  was  this  for  the  Messiah  to  go 
about  his  work!  So  different  was  it  from  the  method 
of  John  the  Baptizer!  So  different  from  the  way  in 
which  people  expected  the  Messiah  to  come!  So  dif- 
ferent from  the  ways  suggested  by  the  tempter  in  the 
wilderness! 

Nevertheless,  this  was  God's  way.  The  hour  had  not 
yet  come  for  proclaiming  that  Jesus  was  the  Messiah. 
And  no  one  knew  what  he  had  experienced  at  his  bap- 
tism and  during  the  weeks  in  the  wilderness.  But  all 
the  time,  Jesus  was  winning  men  and  women  and  chil- 
dren for  the  Kingdom  of  God.  They  were  learning,  as 
never  before,  what  God's  Kingdom  was  to  be,  when 
Jesus  explained  it  to  them.  It  was  to  be  a  Kingdom 
ruled  by  God  in  righteousness  and  love.  And  to  enter 
it  men  must  not  only  repent  and,  as  John  had  said, 
"bring  forth  fruits  of  repentance";  they  must  become 


64  THE  LIFE  AND  TIMES  OF  JESUS 

the  children  of  their  Father  in  heaven.  And  what  Jesus 
did  in  this  quiet  way  was  to  make  people  want  to  be 
children  of  God.  Even  as  Messiah  could  he  possibly 
have  done  anything  greater  than  this? 

This  is  God's  way.  Not  in  the  voice  of  thunder,  not 
in  fires  and  lightnings  and  figures  descending  from  the 
sky,  not  with  hosts  of  angels  or  armies  of  soldiers,  but 
in  quietness  and  gentleness  God  comes  to  people  and 
asks  them  to  be  His  children.  You  know  the  words  of 
the  Christmas  hymn — 

"How  silently,  how  silently 
The  wondrous  gift  is  given! 
So  God  imparts  to  human  hearts 
The  blessings  of  His  heaven." 

— Phillips  Brooks. 

THE   FIRST  DISCIPLES 

One  day,  as  he  was  passing  along  the  shore  of  the 
lake,  he  saw  two  fishermen  casting  their  net.  They 
were  brothers  and  also  partners  in  business,  Simon 
Peter  and  his  younger  brother  Andrew.  Jesus  knew 
who  they  were;  they  lived  in  Capernaum,  and  were 
among  those  who  had  gone  to  hear  John  and  were  bap- 
tized. They  were  men  whom  he  wanted  as  helpers  in 
his  ministry  to  spread  the  message  which  he  alone  was 
preaching,  and  to  teach  the  people  who  were  now  so 
eager  to  learn. 

"Fishers  of  men." — So  Jesus  called  out  to  them, 
"Come  with  me  and  I  will  make  you  fishers  of  men." 
When  they  heard  this  they  came  to  land  at  once,  left 
their  nets,  and  went  with  him.  They  had  heard  Jesus 
before;  they  knew  what  he  was  teaching;  they  welcomed 
the  privilege  of  following  him,  helping  him,  and  con- 
stantly hearing  him. 


BEGINNING  HIS  MINISTRY  65 

Two  other  brotfiers. — A  little  further  up  the  beach 
they  found  two  otlier  brothers,  James  and  John,  who 
with  their  father  Zebedee  were  busy  mending  nets. 
Straightway  Jesus  called  them  to  follow  him.  At  once, 
like  Simon  and  Andrew,  they  rose  and  went,  leaving 
their  father  with  the  hired  servants  in  the  boat.  It 
was  a  wonderful  honor  to  be  asked  by  a  rabbi  to  become 
his  disciple.  And  Jesus  was  to  them  more  than  any 
rabbi  whom  they  had  ever  heard,  a  greater  teacher,  a 
more  winning  friend;  he  made  them  want  to  be  sons  of 
God. 

From  now  on  Jesus  had  disciples  with  him  wherever 
he  went.  Before  long  there  were  twelve.  But  of  all 
the  twelve,  it  was  three  of  this  first  group,  Peter  and 
James  and  John,  who  were  his  closest  friends,  who  went 
with  him  always,  wherever  he  went,  and  who  of  all  the 
disciples  learned  the  most  from  their  Master. 

STUDY  TOPICS 

1.  Do  you  think  that  Jesus,  even  as  Messiah,  could  have 

accomplished  anything  greater  than  making  people 
want  to  become  children  of  God?  What  does  it 
mean  to  be  a  "child  of  God"? 

2.  Show  how  John's  preaching  was  a  preparation  for 

Jesus'  ministry. 

3.  Describe  in  your  own  words  the  difference  between 

John  and  Jesus. 

4.  What  do  you  suppose  Jesus  meant  when  he  promised 

to  make  his  disciples  "fishers  of  men"? 

5.  Who  was  Herod  Antipas? 


CHAPTER  IX 
A  DAY  IN  CAPERNAUM 

After  calling  the  four  young  fishermen  to  be  his 
disciples,  Jesus  went  into  the  city  of  Capernaum.  No 
doubt  Peter  had  invited  his  new  teacher  to  go  home 
and  stay  with  him  over  the  Sabbath.  This  was  the 
beginning  of  his  work  in  Capernaum. 

IN  THE   SYNAGOGUE 

Capernaum  was  the  most  important  city  of  Galilee. 
It  was  not  the  capital,  but  it  was  the. chief  trading 
center, 

Jesus'  work  in  Capernaum. — Here,  as  we  have  seen, 
was  the  custom  house,  where  tolls  were  levied  on  the 
caravans  passing  between  Damascus  and  Babylon  in 
the  east  and  Palestine  and  Egypt  in  the  south  and  west. 
Here  were  the  markets  where  all  the  products  of  Galilee 
were  bought  and  sold,  vegetables,  fruit,  and  manufac- 
tured articles.  Capernaum  was  the  largest  city  on  the 
lake.  People  were  constantly  coming  and  going.  There 
was  no  better  opportunity  anywhere  for  spreading  the 
good  news  of  the  Kingdom  of  God  than  preaching  on 
the  Sabbath  in  the  synagogue  at  Capernaum. 

The  synagogue  was  one  of  the  largest  and  most  beau- 
tiful in  Palestine.  It  was  built  of  stone,  and  stood  on 
the  top  of  a  hill.  From  its  "porch"  or  courtyard  and 
open  doorway — even  from  its  windows — could  be  seen 
the  blue  waters  of  the  lake,  with  its  border  of  sur- 
rounding hills  showing  dimly  in  the  distance.  This 
beautiful  house  of  worship  had  been  built  by  a  devout 

66 


A  DAY  IN  CAPERNAUM  67 

Gentile  (see  Luke  7 :  4-5)  in  honor  of  the  God  worshiped 
by  the  Jews.  He  was  the  centurion  in  command  of  the 
small  garrison  of  soldiers  stationed  at  Capernaum — to 
protect  the  custom  house  and  guard  the  roads  here  at 
the  border  of  GaHlee. 

Jesus  preaches  in  the  synagogue. — As  his  custom 
was,  Jesus  went  to  the  synagogue  on  the  Sabbath  with 
his  four  disciples,  Peter  and  Andrew,  James  and  John. 
When  the  time  came  and  he  was  asked  to  read  the  Law 
and  expound  it,  he  went  forward  to  the  chancel  and  re- 
ceived the  scroll  from  the  sexton  (who  had  taken  it  from 
the  "ark"  or  cupboard  where  the  scrolls  were  kept); 
then  he  turned  and  faced  the  congregation,  unrolled  the 
book  till  he  found  the  place,  and  read  to  them  the  Lesson 
appointed  for  that  day. 

As  soon  as  he  finished  reading  he  handed  back  the 
sacred  manuscript  to  the  attendant,  who  slipped  over  it 
the  embroidered  cloth  cover  in  which  it  was  kept,  re- 
placed it  in  the  ark,  and  drew  the  curtains  before  it. 
Then  Jesus  sat  down  and  taught  the  people  the  meaning 
of  the  Scripture  which  he  had  just  read.  That  is  the 
way  the  sermon  was  delivered  in  the  synagogue  in 
Jesus'  time. 

How  we  should  like  to  know  what  he  told  the  congre- 
gation that  morning!  Before  long,  we  shall  read  about 
his  visit  to  Nazareth  and  his  sermon  there.  But  if  only 
we  knew  how  he  began  his  teaching  in  Capernaum,  his 
first  address  in  the  foremost  city  of  his  native  district! 
But  at  least  we  are  told  of  his  hearers  that  "they  were 
astonished  at  his  teaching:  for  he  taught  them  as  hav- 
ing authority,  and  not  as  the  scribes"  (Mark  1:22). 
The  scribes  never  taught  without  quoting  the  authority 
of  their  teachers  for  everything  they  said;  but  Jesus 
taught  as  if  he  himself  had  suflticient  authority,  and  did 


68  THE  LIFE  AND  TIMES  OF  jESUS 

not  need  to  quote  others.  How  strange  and  wonderful 
this  sccincd  to  his  hearers! 

The  demoniac  in  the  synagogue. — But  they  were 
soon  to  be  still  more  astonished.  For  there  was  a  man 
in  the  synagogue  who  had  what  his  neighbors  called 
"an  unclean  spirit."  That  is,  he  had  "fits"  which  peo- 
ple supposed  came  from  an  evil  spirit  or  demon  entering 
into  him  from  time  to  time  and  compelling  him  to  act 
in  a  disgusting  way.  Worse  than  this,  the  poor  man 
himself  believed  that  his  trouble  came  from  an  evil 
spirit;  and  since  he  was  "possessed"  by  the  demon, 
there  was  no  use  trying  to  become  sound  and  well.  So 
he  gave  himself  up  to  the  disease,  and  whenever  his 
spells  came  on  his  own  weakness  of  will  simply  made 
the  attack  more  severe. 

That  morning  in  the  synagogue,  while  the  people 
v/ere  listening  in  wonder  and  admiration  to  the  rabbi 
from  Nazareth,  the  man  suddenly  felt  an  attack  coming 
on.  Unable,  as  he  supposed,  to  control  himself,  he 
shouted  out,  "What  business  have  you  with  us,  Jesus 
of  Nazareth?  Have  you  come  here  to  destroy  us?  I 
know  you — you  are  the  Holy  One  of  God!" 

What  did  this  mean?  The  man  himself  was  not 
speaking;  he  had  no  control  over  his  words.  It  was 
the  demon  within  him,  everyone  thought.  Did  the 
demon  mean  that  Jesus  had  come  from  Nazareth  to 
Capernaum  in  order  to  harm  the  people  of  Caper- 
naum? Or  did  he  mean  that  Jesus  had  power  to  de- 
stroy the  demons,  that  he  was  God's  Holy  One  sent 
for  the  ver>-  purpose  of  destroying  them? 

Perhaps  the  rabbi  had  been  speaking,  as  he  spoke 
everywhere  else,  of  the  coming  of  God's  Kingdom,  and 
how  it  meant  that  evil  must  be  put  away  from  men's 
hearts  and  from  wherever  in  the  world  it  was  to  be 


A  DAY  IN  CAPERNAUM  69 

found.  Everyone  knew  that  when  the  Messiah  came, 
the  evil  spirits  would  be  vanquished  and  either  destroyed 
or  imprisoned  forever.  Some  such  idea  had  entered  the 
poor  demoniac's  troubled  mind;  and,  blurting  out  what- 
ever words  came  to  him,  he  interrupted  the  service 
before  anyone  could  stop  him. 

Jesus  heals  him. — But  Jesus  was  not  annoyed. 
Turning  to  the  man,  he  spoke  as  if  addressing  the 
demon  and  said  firmly,  "Silence!  Come  out  of  him." 
The  man  dropped  to  the  floor  in  convulsions  and 
then,  after  a  loud  and  prolonged  wail,  became  silent. 
In  a  moment  or  two  he  rose  and  was  himself 
again. 

No  one  had  ever  before  tried  to  help  the  man  gain 
self-control.  Everyone  feared  the  demon,  and  only 
made  the  miserable  man  still  more  depressed  and  hope- 
less. But  Jesus  had  no  fear  of  demons.  He  knew  that 
God  wanted  His  children  to  be  well  and  strong  in  body 
and  soul.  And  if  only  men  would  beUeve  in  God  and 
face  the  demons  they  would  flee. 

As  the  man  rose  up  a  wave  of  surprise  and  awe  passed 
over  the  congregation.  Neighbor  leaned  over  to  neigh- 
bor and  whispered,  "What  is  this?  Did  you  ever  hear 
such  teaching  before?  and  with  such  proof  of  its  au- 
thority? .  .  .  Why,  he  even  commands  the  unclean 
spirits  and  they  obey  him!" 

IN  Peter's  house 

When  the  service  was  over,  Jesus  and  his  two  other 
disciples  went  home  with  Peter  and  Andrew. 

The  healing  in  Peter's  house. — There  was  sickness 
in  the  house;  and  so  before  they  arrived  Peter  began  to 
tell  them  about  it.  His  wife's  mother  lived  with  them, 
and  she  was  sick  abed  with  a  {ever.    But  perhaps,  since 


70  THE  LIFE  AND  TIMES  OF  JESUS 

Jesus  had  healed  the  insane  man  in  the  synagogue,  he 
could  also  drive  away  the  fever. 

So  when  Jesus  came  in  he  went  directly  to  her  bed- 
side. He  spoke  to  her  gently,  and  taking  her  by  the 
hand  raised  her  up.  As  he  did  so  the  fever  left  her. 
She  felt  perfectly  well,  and  at  once  began  helping  with 
the  dinner. 

The  news  spreads. — The  news  of  what  had  occurred 
in  the  synagogue  that  morning  spread  rapidly  through 
the  city.  Everyone  said,  'Tf  the  rabbi  can  drive  out 
demons,  he  must  be  able  to  cure  all  disease."  So  they 
planned  to  bring  to  him  all  that  were  sick  in  the  city. 
Friends  and  neighbors  would  bring  the  lame  and  blind 
and  paralj^zed.  Fathers  and  mothers  would  take  their 
children;  children  would  take  their  parents. 

Waiting  for  the  Sabbath  to  end. — But  they  could 
not  do  so  while  it  was  still  the  Sabbath.  For  the  Law 
forbade  carrying  burdens  on  the  Sabbath — even  if  the 
burden  were  one's  sick  brother;  and  some  of  the  scribes 
said  that  it  was  breaking  the  Law  to  heal  or  be  healed 
on  the  Sabbath.  And  so  they  waited  for  the  sunset, 
when  the  Sabbath  would  end. 

Cures  in  the  evening. — In  the  evening,  when  the 
sun  had  set,  they  came.  There  were  people  lame  and 
blind  and  deaf;  there  were  poor,  frightened,  crying 
demoniacs,  begging  not  to  be  tortured;  there  were  others 
suffering  from  paralysis,  who  had  to  be  carried  by  their 
friends  or  relatives.  Indeed,  Mark  says,  "The  whole 
city  gathered  at  Peter's  door." 

The  demons  he  sternly  commanded  to  keep  silence. 
He  would  not  permit  the  wild,  ungoverned  words  and 
cries  which,  people  supposed,  came  from  the  wicked 
spirits.  To  some  persons  he  addressed  a  word  of  com- 
mand.   Upon  others  he  laid  his  hands,  with  prayer  for 


A  DAY  IN  CAPERNAUM  71 

their  recovery.  Many  went  home  rejoicing  that  night, 
healed  and  made  whole  once  more. 

At  last  the  crowds  dispersed.  There  were  no  street 
lights  in  the  narrow  lanes  of  that  lakeside  city.  But 
there  were  lamps  burning  in  many  of  the  houses;  and 
through  the  open  doors,  here  and  there,  came  the  light. 
Through  the  night  came  the  sounds  of  distant  voices — 
people  in  other  streets  finding  their  way  homeward; 
people  within  the  houses  talking  of  the  great  teacher 
who  had  come  to  them  and  thanking  God  for  the  restora- 
tion of  their  dear  ones. 

So  ended  the  first  day  of  Jesus'  ministry  in  Caper- 
naum. He  had  come  to  Capernaum  to  spread  the  tidings 
of  the  Kingdom  of  God.  And  in  one  day  he  was  known 
throughout  the  city.  On  the  morrow  his  name  would 
begin  to  travel  the  length  and  breadth  of  Palestine,  and 
then  to  the  world  outside! 

STUDY  TOPICS 

1.  Describe  a  synagogue,  especially  its  interior,  as  found 

in  the  days  of  Jesus. 

2.  Try  to  fonn  a  clear  mental  picture  of  the  services  held 

in  the  synagogue,  and  then  describe  a  service  in 
your  own  words. 

3.  Why  was  CapernamTi  an  important  city?     Do  you 

think  that  is  why  Jesus  began  his  ministry  there  ? 

4.  Tell  the  story  of  Jesus'  first  day  in  Capernaum  (read 

Mark  i :  21-34). 

5.  Contrast  the  attitude  of  Jesus  to  the  evil  spirits  and 

that  of  the  people  of  his  time. 


CHAPTER  X 
HEALING  THE  SICK 

The  news  that  Jesus  was  able  to  heal  the  sick  spread 
at  once.  Such  news  would  spread  rapidly  enough 
to-day.  For  even  now,  when  we  have  doctors  who 
know  how  to  prescribe  medicines  and  treatments  for 
most  diseases,  the  news  that  some  man  can  heal  by 
faith  and  prayer,  without  medicine,  spreads  ever3nvhere 
and  people  flock  to  him.  Imagine  what  it  was  like  in 
Capernaum  when  people  heard  that  the  rabbi  from 
Nazareth  could  heal  by  a  touch  or  a  word! 

JESUS   HEALING   THE   SICK 

At  that  time  doctors  knew  very  little  about  disease 
or  medicine,  or  even  about  physiology.  Indeed,  they 
knew  less  than  any  boy  or  girl  of  to-day  knows,  who  has 
studied  physiology  and  hygiene  in  the  public  school. 
This  may  seem  very  strange,  but  it  is  perfectly  true. 

Jewish  physicians. — The  medicines  in  common  use 
were  oil,  salt,  balm,  salve,  mandrake  roots,  wine,  and 
the  like.  These  were  simply  the  oldest  and  best  known 
of  "home  remedies"  used  in  the  east  for  thousands  of 
years.  Of  course,  really  serious  diseases  could  not  be 
cured  by  such  remedies.  And  so  they  thought,  when 
anyone  became  very  sick,  and  their  medicine  did  no 
good,  that  he  must  have  committed  some  dreadful  sin, 
and  that  God  was  sending  the  sickness  to  punish  him. 
Jesus  taught  that  this  was  not  so — God  does  not  "send" 
sickness  to  punish  His  children. 

Or  else  they  thought  the  sickness  was  due  to  some 
evil  spirit.     There  were  all  sorts  of  evil  spirits  in  the 

72 


HEALING  THE  SICK  73 

world — some  brought  on  one  kind  of  disease,  others 
produced  another  kind;  some  caused  lameness  and 
blindness  and  deafness,  some  drove  their  victims  into 
insanity  or  epilepsy  or  other  terrible  afflictions.  To 
guard  against  these  wicked  spirits,  people  wore  charms 
and  amulets.  These  were  odd-looking  stones,  pieces  of 
bark,  the  teeth  of  animals,  forked  sticks  or  curious  twigs, 
necklaces  shaped  like  serpents,  and  so  forth.  These 
amulets  were  supposed  to  keep  away  disease  as  well  as 
cure  it. 

Whenever  a  child  felt  sick  the  parents  tried  to  remem- 
ber if  someone  had  looked  long  at  it,  or  had  winked,  and 
thus  cast  the  spell  of  the  ''evil  eye"  upon  it.  If  they 
could  remember,  and  find  the  person,  and  have  the 
spell  removed,  the  child  would  get  well. 

People  simply  did  not  know  what  caused  disease. 
Only  a  very  few  hygienic  rules  were  understood  or  ob- 
served. And  their  "medicines"  were  hardly  deserving 
the  name.  It  was  quite  natural,  then,  for  people  to  try 
all  sorts  of  superstitious  means  for  getting  well. 

The  methods  of  Jesus. — Jesus  rejected  these 
methods.  He  did  not  share  the  superstitions  be- 
cause he  believed  in  the  goodness  and  love  of  God.  He 
knew  that  sickness  was  not  sent  to  punish  people  for 
sin,  because  it  is  not  always  the  wicked  who  suffer  the 
greatest  pain.  He  saw  babies  and  little  children,  with 
whom  God  cannot  possibly  be  offended,  suffering  far 
more  than  grown  up  men  who  knew  they  had  done 
wrong.  And  anyway,  Jesus  realized  that  God  loves 
people,  and  does  not  punish  them  for  sins  which  they 
don't  even  know  that  they  have  committed. 

As  for  the  demons,  whom  everyone  dreaded,  it  was 
no  use  wearing  amulets  and  charms.  They  could  do  no 
good.     Instead  of  fearing  the  demons,  people  should 


74  THE  LIFE  AND  TIMES  OF  JESUS 

trust  in  God  and  His  care.  If  they  would  only  be  ''fol- 
lowers of  that  which  is  good,"  no  harm  could  come  to 
them  from  e\dl  spirits.  The  spirits  could  be  commanded, 
in  the  name  of  God,  to  depart  and  nevermore  enter  the 
bodies  and  minds  of  the  sick.  All  that  people  needed 
was  to  believe,  to  have  faith  and  not  fear. 

The  disciples  also  learned  how  to  heal  people  in  this 
way.  Later  on  Jesus  sent  them  out  on  a  journey  and 
bade  them  do  this  very  thing.  For  of  course  it  was 
part  of  Jesus'  task,  as  Messiah,  to  conquer  every 
work  of  e\'il.  He,  above  all  others,  was  the  one  to  drive 
out  the  evil  spirits  by  the  power  of  the  Holy  Spirit, 
which  he  had  received  at  his  baptism. 

The  coming  of  the  Kingdom  of  God,  that  is,  of  God's 
own  rule  or  reign  in  the  world,  meant  the  end  of  sick- 
ness as  well  as  of  sin.  The  Holy  Spirit  had  been  given 
to  Jesus — ^that  was  the  first  great  sign  of  the  coming  of 
God  to  set  up  His  reign  upon  earth.  And  Jesus  was  to 
use  the  power,  which  came  to  him  from  the  Spirit,  in 
making  the  bodies  and  souls  of  men  well  and  strong. 
For  health  of  the  body  and  health  of  the  soul  go  to- 
gether. Both  are  required  if  we  are  to  do  God's  will 
in  the  world.  Thus  the  healing  of  the  sick  was  an  im- 
portant part  of  Jesus'  work. 

JESUS   LEAVES   CAPERNAUM 

So  soon  had  the  news  spread  through  the  city;  so 
soon  would  it  spread  still  further  to  every  village  and 
market  place  in  Syria,  that  Jesus  had  no  need  to  leave 
Capernaum.  He  might  stay  there  as  long  as  he  wished, 
and  people  would  come  to  him  from  every  part  of  the 
country,  bringing  the  sick  to  be  healed.  Should  he, 
then,  remain  in  Capernaum?  That  was  one  way  in 
which  his  mission  might  be  carried  out. 


HEALING  THE  SICK  75 

He  goes  to  the  next  towns. — But  it  was  not  the 
best  way.  True  enough,  the  people  would  hear  his 
message,  "Repent,  for  the  Reign  of  God  is  about  to  be 
established."  Yet  they  would  scarcely  heed  it  as  they 
should,  for  they  were  so  much  more  interested  in  his 
power  over  the  demons. 

So,  the  next  morning,  rising  up  a  great  while  before 
day,  he  went  out  into  a  lonely  place  and  prayed.  Jesus 
always  prayed  before  making  up  his  mind  upon  im- 
portant matters.  He  asked  his  Father  in  heaven  to 
guide  him  to  the  right  decision. 

After  a  time  the  dawn  appeared  over  the  eastern 
horizon,  and  the  dark  waters  of  the  lake  turned  gray, 
then  white,  and  began  to  shimmer.  By  sunrise  all 
Capernaum  was  astir.  Shops  were  opened,  caravans 
harnessed  and  loaded,  the  business  of  the  week  had 
begun — but  this  was  not  the  chief  cause  of  the  commo- 
tion. Around  the  doorway  of  Peter's  house  once  more 
the  crowds  were  gathering.  Those  who  had  not  come 
the  night  before,  or  who  had  not  been  healed,  were 
there.— Where  was  Jesus?    He  had  disappeared ! 

Seeking  for  Jesus. — Peter  and  his  friends  set  forth 
to  find  him.  They  went  down  along  the  beach  to  the 
place  where  he  had  come  to  them  and  called  them  the 
week  before.  They  went  up  into  the  hills  back  of  the 
town.  At  last  they  found  him,  and  Peter  said,  "Ever}^- 
one  is  looking  for  you.  The  whole  city  is  waiting  out- 
side the  house  for  you  to  appear."  But  he  quietly  re- 
plied, "Let  us  go  on  to  the  next  towns,  that  I  may 
preach  there  too.  That  is  the  reason  why  I  have  come 
away." 

ffis  true  mission  was  to  call  people  to  repentance,  to 
teach  them  about  God  and  His  coming  Kingdom,  and 
help   them   to   prepare   to   enter   the   Kingdom   as  its 


76  THE  LIFE  AND  TIMES  OF  JESUS 

citizens,  as  children  of  God,  the  heavenly  Father  and 
King.  Compared  with  that,  even  healing  the  sick  was 
not  so  important. 

STUDY  TOPICS 

1.  Why  were  the  people  of  Jesus'  day  especially  attracted 

to  one  who  could  heal  their  diseases? 

2.  Does  the  Church  to-day  carry  on  a  ministry  of  heal- 

ing? Have  you  ever  heard  a  missionary  describe 
the  work  of  doctors  in  foreign  countries? 

3.  Was  the  chief  thought  of  Jesus  to  heal  men's  bodies? 

If  he  had  remained  in  Capernaum,  what  might  have 
been  the  result  of  his  ministry?    Why  did  he  leave? 

4.  Judging  from  Jesus'  readiness  to  heal  all  manner  of 

diseases  for  all  manner  of  people,  do  you  think  that 
God  sends  sickness  upon  us  to  punish  us  for  sin? 
And  see  Luke  13 :  1-5;  John  9:  1-3. 

5.  The  methods  used  by  the  people  in  the  days  of  Jesus 

were  partly  "old-fashioned  remedies"  and  partly 
magic.  They  believed  in  charms.  Did  you  ever 
know  anyone  who  believed  in  charms?  Do  charms 
ever  do  any  good  ? 


CHAPTER  XI 
THE  CALL  OF  THE  DISCIPLES 

Jesus  now  set  out  to  visit  the  cities  and  villages  of 
Galilee.  Probably  he  first  went  to  the  towns  along  the 
north  and  west  shore  of  the  lake— Chorazin,  Bethsaida, 
and  Magdala.  He  was  preaching  on  the  Sabbath  in  the 
synagogues;  during  the  week  he  taught  the  people 
wherever  they  gathered.  Soon  multitudes  of  people 
were  following  him.  Wherever  he  went  the  fame  of  his 
teaching  and  healing  preceded  him.  Accompanying  him 
were  the  four  disciples  whom  he  had  called  as  he  came 
to  Capernaum— Peter  and  Andrew,  James  and  John. 

THE   CALL   OF   LEVI 

One  day,  as  they  were  passing  along  the  shore  of  the 
lake,  he  saw  a  man  named  Levi  sitting  at  the  customs 
booth.  Jesus  knew  him,  and  wished  him  to  become  a 
disciple.    But  Levi  was  a  publican. 

The  people  of  Galilee  hated  publicans.  They  were 
tax-gatherers,  who  not  only  assessed  the  value  of  prop- 
erty and  decided  how  much  the  tax  would  be,  but  also 
collected  the  money.  They  paid  a  certain  amount  to 
the  government  for  their  ofl&ce— the  office  was  given  to 
the  highest  bidder— and  then  made  their  fortunes  by 
collecting  exorbitant  taxes  from  travelers,  passing  cara- 
vans, and  their  own  neighbors.  No  wonder  they  were 
despised  and  hated! 

Jesus  calls  Levi. — But  the  shame  and  disgrace  of 
Levi's  profession  did  not  hinder  Jesus  from  calling  him. 
It  is  wonderful  how  the  Master  read  the  characters  of 

77 


78  THE  LIFE  AND  TIMES  OF  JESUS 

people  and  saw  at  once  what  they  really  were  in  their 
secret  hearts.  He  knew  that  Levi  might  become  a  true 
and  faithful  disciple  and  so  he  called  him.  Just  as  in 
calling  the  fishermen,  Jesus  said  to  him  the  brief  words, 
"Follow  me."  He  did  not  explain  why  he  wanted  him 
to  come.  But  Levi  understood,  and  arose  and  followed 
at  once. 

The  dinner  in  Levi's  house. — It  was  the  custom 
when  anyone  became  the  disciple  of  a  rabbi  to  give  a 
banquet.  The  new  scholar  invited  his  friends — it  was  a 
sort  of  farewell  dinner. 

So  Levi  had  a  dinner  at  his  house  and  invited  his 
friends.  Levi's  friends  were  also  tax-collectors,  and  they 
were  all  men  whom  the  Pharisees  described  as  "sinners." 
To  be  a  sinner,  according  to  the  Pharisees,  one  had  only 
to  omit  certain  ceremonies  or  break  certain  rules  which 
they  laid  down  as  equal  in  importance  to  the  divine  Law. 

For  instance,  to  buy  goods  from  Gentiles,  or  sell  them, 
during  the  three  days  preceding  a  feast-day  was  a  sin; 
or  to  eat  without  first  going  through  the  ceremony  of 
dipping  your  fingers  in  water;  or  to  walk  more  than  a 
mile  on  the  Sabbath — all  these  were  sins.  And  of  course, 
publicans  were  dealing  with  Gentiles  every  day,  and  so 
were  "unclean." 

The  Pharisees  gave  them  up  as  hopelessly  wicked; 
they  could  do  nothing  for  them.  The  poor  publicans, 
who  didn't  know  much  about  religion  and  supposed  the 
Pharisees  were  right,  gave  up  trying  to  please  God. 
And  so  some  of  them  became  quite  as  bad  as  the  Phari- 
sees said  they  were.  Thus  while  Jesus  made  it  easier 
for  people  to  do  right,  because  he  made  people  want  to 
do  good  and  be  good  and  please  God,  the  Pharisees  made 
it  harder.  For  they  called  the  publicans  and  other 
"sinners"  accursed,  and  made  them  feel  that  religion 


THE  CALL  OF  THE  DISCH^LES  79 

was  altogether  too  hard,  and  God  too  exacting.  The 
Pharisees  succeeded  only  in  making  such  peo[)le  thor- 
oughly dislike  religion. 

So  when  Jesus  and  his  disciples  sat  down  at  Levi's 
table,  with  the  publicans  and  other  "sinners,"  the 
Pharisees  heard  of  it  and  were  amazed. 

The  question  of  the  Pharisees. — Some  of  their  dis- 
ciples came  to  the  disciples  of  Jesus  and  asked,  "Why 
does  your  teacher  eat  and  drink  with  publicans  and 
sinners?  If  he  were  a  holy  man  he  would  avoid  such 
defilement!" 

Jesus  himself  answered  their  question:  "They  that 
are  well  have  no  need  of  a  physician,  but  they  that  are 
sick.  I  came  not  to  call  the  righteous  but  sinners  to 
repentance."  If  the  pubHcans  were  sinful,  then  they 
needed  Jesus.  That  was  his  work — to  call  sinners  to 
repentance,  to  prepare  them  to  enter  the  Kingdom  of 
God.  But  the  Pharisees  were  thinking  only  of  saving 
themselves,  and  not  others. 

THE   OTHER   DISCIPLES 

Jesus  now  had  five  disciples — Peter  and  Andrew, 
James  and  John,  and  Levi,  who  was  also  called  Mat- 
thew. To  these  five  were  soon  added  seven  others. 
Just  when  the  other  disciples  were  called  we  do  not 
know.  But  one  day,  after  a  night  spent  in  prayer,  Jesus 
was  teaching  on  a  hillside  in  the  country.  The  multi- 
tude, which  now  followed  him  e\Tr}'where,  had  gathered 
about  him  to  listen.  He  rose  up  and  stood  apart,  and 
called  to  him  a  group  of  twelve. 

The  Twelve. — These  were  the  twelve  disciples — 
"whom  he  also  called  apostles" — for  they  were  to  be 
"sent"  (apostle  means  "one  sent'')  on  missions  of  teach- 
ing and  healing  to  parts  of  the  country  which  Jesus 


8o  THE  LIFE  AND  TIMES  OF  JESUS 

himself  could  not  reach.  Their  names  were,  including 
the  five  about  whom  we  have  already  heard:  Simoji 
Peter  and  Andrew;  James  the  son  of  Zebedee  and  John 
his  brother;  Levi,  also  called  Matthew;  Philip;  Bar- 
tholomew; Thomas;  James  the  son  of  Alphaeus;  Thad- 
daeus;  Simon  the  Zealot;  and  Judas  Iscariot. 

The  others. — Then  there  were  others,  about  whom 
little  is  told  in  the  Gospels.  They  did  not  follow  Jesus 
from  place  to  place,  but  welcomed  him  whenever  he 
came  to  their  towns,  and  did  what  they  could  to 
extend  the  message  that  he  taught.  Such  were  Joseph  of 
Arimathea  and  Nicodemus,  and  perhaps  Nathanael; 
there  were  also  women,  like  Mary  of  Magdala,  who  had 
been  healed  of  a  grievous  illness;  Joanna,  the  wife  of 
Chuza,  Herod's  steward;  Susanna;  and  many  others  who 
ministered  to  Jesus  "of  their  substance." 

Some  who  did  not  become  disciples. — There  were 
some  whom  Jesus  called  who  did  not  heed  the  invita- 
tion. One  day  he  said  to  a  man,  "Follow  me."  But  the 
man  replied,  "Let  me  go  first  and  bury  my  father." 
But  Jesus  answered,  "Let  the  dead  bury  the  dead:  it 
is  your  duty  to  go  and  publish  abroad  the  Kingdom  of 
God." 

Others  wished  to  follow  him,  but  were  not  worthy  to 
become  disciples.  One  day  a  man  said  to  him,  "Master,  I 
will  follow  you  wherever  you  go;  first  let  me  go  and  say 
goodby  to  those  at  home."  But  Jesus  replied  to  him, 
"No  man,  having  put  his  hand  to  the  plow  and  then 
looking  back,  is  fit  for  the  Kingdom  of  God." 

Another  said  that  he  wanted  to  become  a  disciple 
and  follow  Jesus  wherever  he  went,  but  Jesus  told  him, 
"The  foxes  have  holes,  and  the  birds  of  the  air  have 
their  nests;  but  the  Son  of  Man  has  not  where  to  lay 
his  head!" 


THE  CALL  OF  THE  DISCIPLES  8i 

These  men  scarcely  realized  what  it  meant  to  be  a 
disciple  of  Jesus. 

The  rich  yoxrng  man. — There  was  one  young  man, 
who  was  very  rich  and  owned  great  estates,  who  wanted 
to  follow  Jesus  and  at  the  same  time  keep  his  great  pos- 
sessions. In  case  the  KJingdom  did  not  come  as  he 
expected  it  (as  a  political  kingdom,  with  Jesus  as  ruler 
in  Jerusalem),  then  he  would  still  have  his  wealth.  He 
did  not  wish  to  risk  anything — he  wanted  to  "play  safe," 
whether  the  Kingdom  was  to  come  or  not.  Jesus  told 
him  to  sell  all  that  he  had,  give  the  money  to  the  poor, 
and  then  come  and  follow  him.  But  the  man  went  away 
sorrowful:  for  he  could  not  face  that  test. 

One  story  says  that  he  came  to  Jesus  and  asked, 
"What  shall  I  do  to  inherit  eternal  life?"  Jesus  an- 
swered, "Keep  the  Law  and  the  Prophets."  He  said,  "I 
have  done  so."  Jesus  then  told  him  to  sell  what  he  had 
and  give  to  the  poor,  and  come  and  follow  him.  The 
rich  man  began  to  demur,  for  the  command  scarcely 
pleased  him. 

Then  Jesus  asked  him,  "How  can  you  say,  'I  have 
kept  the  Law  and  the  Prophets,'  when  the  Law  says  to 
love  your  neighbor  as  yourself?  For  many  of  your 
brothers,  sons  of  Abraham,  are  clothed  in  rags  and  are 
dying  of  hunger;  yet  your  house  is  full  of  good  things, 
and  nothing  comes  out  of  it  for  them!"  And  he  turned 
to  Peter  and  said,  "Simon,  son  of  Jona,  it  is  easier  for  a 
camel  to  go  through  the  eye  of  a  needle  than  for  a  rich 
man  to  enter  the  Kingdom  of  God!" 

WHAT  IT  MEANT  TO  BE  A  DISCIPLE 

Thus  there  were  some  whom  Jesus  called  to  follow 
him  who  made  excuses  and  refused  to  go.  There  were 
others  who  wanted  to  become  disciples,  but  could  not 


82  THE  LIFE  AND  TIMES  OF  JESUS 

meet  the  requirements.  What  did  it  mean  to  be  a  dis- 
ciple of  Jesus? 

It  meant  hard  work. — Jesus  was  preaching  constantly 
and  traveling  over  the  country  far  and  wide.  He  was 
now  followed  everywhere  by  crowds,  who  came-  to  be 
healed  or  to  see  others  healed,  to  hear  his  message,  and 
to  be  near  at  hand  when  (as  they  expected)  the  King- 
dom of  God  came  in  outward  splendor  and  magnificence. 
The  disciples  were  to  be  with  him  constantly,  and  so  to 
learn  from  him  the  truth  about  the  Kingdom  of  God 
and  God's  requirements  of  those  who  wished  to  enter  it. 
Afterwards  they  too  were  to  preach  the  ''good  news"  of 
the  Kingdom. 

Then  they  were  to  share  in  his  work  of  healing  the 
sick  and  casting  out  demons.  This  was  difficult  and 
exhausting  work.  It  required  great  faith,  and  it  took 
bodily  and  mental  energy.  Some  persons  were  fitted  for 
this  work  and  some  were  not. 

The  conditions  of  discipleship. — But  it  meant  still 
more  to  be  a  disciple.  One  had  to  give  up  whatever  he 
owned,  his  work,  and  even  his  home,  just  as  Jesus  had 
done.  For  these  men  had  been  called  by  their  Master 
to  do  the  greatest  work  men  have  ever  been  asked  to  do. 
They  were  to  call  a  whole  nation  to  prepare  for  the 
coming  of  the  judgment  and  the  setting  up  of  the 
Reign  of  God.  They  were  to  explain  to  people  what 
God's  Kingdom  really  means,  and  what  is  necessary  in 
order  to  share  in  it.  They  were  to  show  to  people,  even 
as  their  Master  was  doing,  that  God's  goodness  and 
love  is  the  true  reason  for  our  being  good:  not  the  fear 
of  punishment,  or  the  desire  for  a  fine  reward  either  in 
heaven  or  on  earth. 

The  privilege  of  discipleship. — But  what  a  wondei- 
ful  privilege  it  was!    To  be  with  Jesus  day  after  day; 


THE  CALL  OF  THE  DISCIPLES  83 

to  go  with  him  and  share  his  work  of  teaching  and  heal- 
ing; to  be  sent  to  minister  to  the  sick  in  other  villages, 
and  to  preach  the  gospel — -this  was  a  greater  privilege 
than  any  other  which  could  possibly  have  come  to  these 
men.  The  Kingdom  of  God  was  coming,  and  they  were 
sharing  with  their  Master  the  task  of  preparing  the 
world  for  its  approach. 

STUDY  TOPICS 

1.  Who  was  Levi?    What  was  his  business?    Describe  it. 

2.  Why  did  the  Pharisees  object  to  Jesus  dining  at  Levi's 

house  ? 

3.  Make  a  list  of  the  twelve  disciples.    Memorize  it. 

4.  Tell  in  your  own  words  what  it  meant  to  be  a  disciple 

of  Jesus. 

5.  Can  people  still  become  disciples  of  Jesus?     How? 

What  does  it  mean  to  be  a  disciple  of  Jesus  to-day? 

6.  Can  disciples  of  Jesus  to-day  prepare  for  the  coming 

of  the  Kingdom  of  God?    If  so,  how? 

7.  Read  Mark  2:  13-17  and  3:  13-19. 


CHAPTER  XII 
KEEPING  THE  SABBATH 

At  the  present  time  everyone  who  Hves  in  a  Christian 
nation  knows  when  Sunday  comes.  Even  people  who 
do  not  go  to  church  observe  it  in  some  way.  Offices  and 
stores  are  closed.    Fewer  trains  run  on  the  railroads. 

But  in  ancient  times  the  Jews  were  the  only  people 
who  rested  one  day  in  seven.  The  Gentiles  kept  their 
shops  open  and  went  about  their  business,  week  in  and 
week  out,  one  day  just  like  another.  And  the  Gentiles 
laughed  at  the  Jews  for  losing  trade  on  their  weekly 
Sabbath.  Nevertheless,  the  custom  was  strictly  ob- 
served. For  the  careful  observance  of  the  Sabbath 
was  one  of  the  most  sacred  customs  of  the  Jewish  race. 

THE  JEWISH   SABBATH 

Everywhere  in  the  world  Jewish  families  set  aside 
their  work  and  rested  from  Friday  at  sunset  until  sun- 
rise two  days  later.  For  Saturday,  not  Sunday,  was  the 
Sabbath. 

The  Law. — It  was  one  of  the  commandments  of  the 
Law, 

"Remember  the  Sabbath  day  to  keep  it  holy.  Six 
days  Shalt  thou  labor  and  do  all  that  thou  hast  to  do. 
But  the  seventh  day  is  the  Sabbath  of  the  Lord  thy 
God.  In  it  thou  shalt  not  do  any  work,  thou  and 
thy  son  and  thy  daughter,  thy  manservant  and  thy 
maidservant,  thy  cattle,  and  the  stranger  that  is 
within  thy  gates.  For  in  six  days  the  Lord  made 
heaven  and  earth,  the  sea,  and  all  that  in  them  is, 
and  rested  the  seventh  day.  Therefore  the  Lord 
84 


KEEPING  THE  SABBATH  85. 

blessed  the  seventh  day  and  hallowed  it." — Exodus 
20:8-11. 

We  ought  not  to  think  that  the  keeping  of  the  Sab- 
bath was  a  painful  burden  to  the  Jewish  people.  In- 
stead, it  was  a  "day  of  rest  and  gladness"  which  every- 
one welcomed  and  enjoyed. 

The  Sabbath-eve. — On  Sabbath-eve,  at  sunset,  the 
Jewish  mother  lighted  the  Sabbath  lamp.  As  she  did  so 
she  said  this  beautiful  prayer: 

"Blessed  art  Thou,  O  Lord  our  God,  Bling  of  the 
Universe,  who  hast  sanctified  us  by  Thy  command- 
ments, and  commanded  us  to  light  the  Sabbath 
lamp." 

There  was  a  service  in  the  synagogue  that  evening, 
and  when  the  family  returned  they  had  dinner.  The 
father's  place  was  at  the  head  of  the  table,  and  he  pro- 
nounced the  blessing  before  they  sat  down.  He  repeated 
the  verses  in  Genesis  telling  of  the  work  of  creation  on 
the  sixth  and  seventh  days  (Genesis  i :  24 — 2 :  3) .  Then 
he  poured  out  a  cup  of  wine  and  said  a  prayer  of  thanks- 
giving for  the  Sabbath.  Drinking  from  the  cup,  he  then 
passed  it  to  his  wife,  who  also  drank  and  gave  it  to  the 
children  and  any  others  at  the  table.  They  then  dipped 
their  fingers  in  water  for  the  ceremonial  cleansing,  and 
sat  down  to  eat.    It  was  a  weekly  festival  of  the  family. 

The  Sabbath  itself. — Of  course,  no  work  was  done 
on  the  Sabbath.  The  family  went  to  the  synagogue  for 
morning  and  evening  worship,  and  the  rest  of  the  day 
was  spent  quietly  indoors,  reading  the  Bible  and  singing 
hymns. 

The  rules  of  the  scribes. — The  scribes,  however, 
were  not  satisfied  to  let  people  decide  for  themselves 
how  the  day  was  to  be  kept.     With  them,  everything 


86  THE  LIFE  AND  TIMES  OF  JESUS 

had  to  be  governed  by  rules.  They  defined  exactly  how 
far  a  person  might  walk  on  the  Sabbath  (a  mile)  and 
not  break  the  Law.  They  explained  just  how  food  was 
to  be  prepared  so  that  no  work  would  be  required. 
They — or  their  followers  later  on,  after  the  time  of 
Jesus— set  forth  the  various  kinds  of  work  prohibited 
on  this  day.  There  were  thirty-nine  of  these — plowing, 
reaping,  threshing,  grinding,  and  so  on,  of  course.  But 
they  even  forbade  taking  out  two  threads  from  a  piece 
of  cloth  (this  would  be  mending  or  sewing) ,  writing  two 
letters  of  a  word,  erasing  to  write  two  letters,  and  similar 
insignificant  acts.  "And  whoever  carries  out  food  the 
size  of  a  dried  fig,"  they  said,  "is  worthy  of  death." 

This  was  a  part  of  "the  fence  about  the  Law,"  which 
they  had  built  up  to  keep  people  from  breaking  the 
commandments.  For,  of  course,  if  a  man  took  care  not 
to  write  even  two  letters,  he  would  not  be  likely  to  do 
much  writing  on  the  Sabbath!  If  a  woman  was  careful 
not  to  pull  two  threads  or  do  two  stitches,  she  would 
not  do  much  sewing  or  mending  on  the  Sabbath!  The 
scribes  wished  to  guard  against  every  possible  breach  of 
the  Law.  Their  motive  was  good,  but  their  method  was 
overdone. 

Objections  to  such  rules. — The  trouble  with  all  such 
regulations  is  that  people  think  more  of  the  rules  than 
they  do  of  the  spirit  which  makes  religion  real.  After  a 
while  it  becomes  a  burden  instead  of  a  joy.  They  come 
to  think  of  God  as  a  hard  taskmaster,  one  who  has  given 
so  many  commandments  that  men  cannot  even  remem- 
ber them  all.  They  forget  that  God  is  really  a  loving 
Father;  that  He  has  given  the  Sabbath  as  a  day  for 
rest  and  worship;  that  He  wants  to  give  His  Kingdom 
to  the  world,  not  to  withhold  it  or  make  it  hard  for  His 
children  to  enter  it. 


KEEPING  THE  SABBATH  87 

JESUS  IN  THE  FIELDS 

One  Sabbath,  late  in  the  summer,  Jesus  and  his  dis- 
ciples were  walking  through  the  fields  of  ripening  grain. 
There  were  no  roads  or  lanes  here,  but  only  paths  across 
the  fields  where  people  walked.  As  they  went  along 
the  disciples  pulled  off  the  heads  of  grain  and  rubbed 
out  the  kernels  in  their  hands.  The  Law  permitted  this. 
If  anyone  was  hungry  he  might  pluck  and  eat  the  heads 
—though  he  must  not  "move  a  sickle  into  his  neighbor's 
standing  grain"  (Deuteronomy  23:  25). 

The  Pharisees'  objection. — Some  Pharisees  saw 
what  the  disciples  were  doing.  They  knew  that^  the 
Law  allowed  this,  but  it  was  the  Sabbath  day!  Strictly 
interpreted  according  to  their  rules,  this  was  both  reap- 
ing and  threshing  on  the  Sabbath! 

So  they  said  to  Jesus,  "Behold!  why  are  your  dis- 
ciples doing  what  is  not  lawful  to  do  on  the  Sabbath?" 

The  example  of  David. — Jesus  answered  them  at 
once,  "Have  you  never  read  what  David  did  when  he 
was  in  need,  and  hungry,  both  he  and  the  men  who  were 
with  him?— How  he  entered  into  the  house  of  God  and 
ate  the  showbread,  which  it  is  not  lawful  for  anyone 
but  the  priests  to  eat,  and  gave  some  to  those  that  were 
with  him?" 

Yes,  the  Pharisees  knew  the  story,  told  in  the  First 
Book  of  Samuel.  David  had  been  warned  to  flee  from 
King  Saul— Jonathan  had  shot  the  arrow  which  was  the 
appointed  signal.  As  David  made  his  way  down  toward 
the  cities  of  the  Philistines  he  came  to  Nob,  the  city  of 
priests.  He  and  his  men  were  hungry,  and  must  find 
food  at  once.  They  came  to  Ahimelech,  the  priest  of 
the  sanctuary,  and  asked  him  for  five  loaves  of  bread. 
All  that  he  had  was  the  sacred  showbread,  standing  in 


88  THE  LIFE  AND  TIMES  OF  JESUS 

the  holy  place  as  an  offering  to  the  Lord.  This  was 
never  removed  unless  it  could  be  replaced  immediately 
with  fresh,  hot  loaves.  Nevertheless,  David  was  in 
great  need,  and  there  was  no  time  to  be  lost.  Ahimelech 
took  the  sacred  bread  and  gave  it  to  David  and  his  men. 

If  a  great  hero  like  David,  who  became  King  of  all 
Israel,  had  been  permitted  to  eat  the  consecrated  bread 
which  was  offered  to  God;  if  a  great  priest  like  Ahime- 
lech had  been  permitted  to  give  it  to  him,  and  no  divine 
judgment  had  overtaken  them;  surely,  then,  Jesus  and 
his  disciples  were  not  guilty  of  breaking  the  Law  of  the 
Sabbath  when  they  rubbed  out  and  ate  a  few  kernels  of 
grain  to  satisfy  their  hunger! 

The  law  of  mercy. — There  is  no  law  above  human 
need.  The  Pharisees  did  not  recognize  this  principle. 
But  the  ancient  Law  provided  for  it,  when  it  permitted 
the  rubbing  out  of  kernels  of  grain,  and  allowed  the 
poor  to  glean  the  fields  and  vineyards  after  most  of  the 
grain  and  fruit  had  been  gathered  (Leviticus  19:  9-10). 
And  it  was  surely  in  accord  with  the  spirit  of  the  Law 
to  permit  the  hungry  to  eat  on  the  Sabbath. 

"The  Sabbath  was  made  for  man,"  Jesus  added,  "not 
man  for  the  Sabbath"  (Mark  2:  27). 

HOW  TO   KEEP   THE   SABBATH 

We  must  not  imagine  that  Jesus  meant  to  do  away 
with  the  Sabbath,  as  the  Pharisees  said.  What  he 
wished  to  do  was  to  free  religion  from  the  burden  of 
petty  rules  which  the  scribes  had  invented,  and  make 
people  feel  the  spirit  of  the  Law.  If  they  could  realize 
what  God  intended  by  the  Law,  if  they  could  feel  its 
spirit,  then  they  would  accomplish  naturally  all  that 
the  scribes  were  trying  to  make  them  do  artificially  and 
under  compulsion. 


KEEPING  THE  SABBATH  89 

How  did  Jesus  keep  the  Sabbath? — Jesus  himself 
kept  the  Sabbath  by  resting  from  work — he  had  done 
this  for  years  as  a  carpenter — and  by  going  to  the  syna- 
gogue to  worship  God,  and  by  doing  good.  Several 
times  he  healed  on  the  Sabbath,  sometimes  right  in  the 
synagogue.  He  also  taught  on  the  Sabbath,  and  brought 
people  nearer  to  God. 

How  should  we  keep  it? — That  is  what  the  Sab- 
bath is  for,  whether  we  observe  it  on  Sunday  or  Satur- 
day: it  is  a  day  in  which  to  rest  from  labor,  to  worship 
God,  and  to  do  good.  Jesus  does  not  lay  down  any 
rules  and  say,  "You  may  do  this  on  the  Sabbath,  but 
you  mustn't  do  that."  Jesus  is  no  scribe  or  Pharisee. 
What  he  does  is  to  tell  us  what  the  Sabbath  is  for;  and 
then  we  must  apply  that  test  to  all  we  wish  to  do. 
Whatever  interferes  with  rest  from  labor,  or  the  wor- 
ship of  God,  or  doing  good  to  others  (for  example, 
\isiting  the  sick)  must  not  be  done. 

It  is  easy  to  ignore  Sunday  in  spirit  while  keeping  it 
in  name.  Many  persons  make  Sunday  a  day  for  mere 
sport  and  recreation.  Instead  of  going  to  church,  they 
go  to  the  countr3^  Instead  of  doing  good  to  others, 
they  "have  a  good  time"  themselves.  But  are  we  keep- 
ing the  spirit  of  the  day  when  we  use  it  only  for  games 
and  picnics  and  drives  in  the  country? 

Jesus  in  the  home  of  Mary  and  Martha. — There 
is  a  story  in  the  Gospel  according  to  Saint  Luke  of  two 
sisters  who  entertained  our  Lord  one  time  when  he  was 
on  his  way  to  Jerusalem.  We  do  not  know  where  they 
lived,  or  who  they  were — but  only  their  names.  Saint 
Luke  must  have  known,  and  the  readers  of  his  Gospel, 
for  the  chief  interest  of  the  story  is  in  the  characters  of 
the  two  women.  It  may  very  likely  have  been  a  Sab- 
bath which  Jesus  spent  in  their  home. 


90  THE  LIFE  AND  TIMES  OF  JESUS 

"Now  as  they  journeyed  on,  they  entered  a  certain 
village,  and  a  woman  named  Martha  invited  Jesus 
to  her  home.  She  had  a  sister  named  Mary,  who  sat 
at  Jesus'  feet  and  listened  to  him.  But  Martha  was 
greatly  troubled  with  the  serving;  and  she  came  up 
to  Jesus  and  said,  'Master,  you  see  how  my  sister 
has  left  me  to  serve  alone.  Tell  her  to  come  now 
and  help  me.' 

"But  Jesus  answered  and  said  to  her,  'Martha, 
Martha,  you  are  anxious  and  worried  about  many 
things.  Only  a  few  are  needful  [the  Sabbath  dinner 
was  a  simple  meal];  indeed,  only  one  [a  calm,  un- 
troubled spirit].  And  Mary  has  chosen  the  good 
part  which  shall  not  be  taken  away  from  her.'  " 

— Luke  10 :  38-42. 

It  is  the  spirit  of  Mary,  rather  than  that  of  Martha, 
which  brings  Sabbath  peace  and  Sabbath  joy,  "Few 
things  are  needful — indeed,  only  one!" 

STUDY  TOPICS 

1 .  How  were  the  Jews  treated  by  their  Gentile  neighbors 

for  observing  the  Sabbath? 

2.  Describe  the  Sabbath-eve  observance  in  the  Jewish 

home.    Was  the  Sabbath  looked  upon  as  a  burden 
by  the  Jews? 

3.  Look  up  the  reference  to  Genesis,  telling  the  story  of 

creation  and  the  divine  institution  of  the  Sabbath. 

4.  Look  up  Leviticus  19:  9,  10;  and  see  Ruth  2  for  the 

story  of  a  gleaner. 

5.  Tell  the  story  of  David  at  Nob.    How  did  his  example 

bear  upon  the  complaint  of  the  Pharisees  against 
Jesus? 

6.  Do  you  know  why  Christians  keep  Sunday  instead  of 

Saturday  as  their  day  of  rest  ? 

7.  How  should  we  keep  Sunday? 


CHAPTER  XIII 

THE  OPPOSITION  OF  THE  SCRIBES  AND 
PHARISEES 

As  Jesus  went  about  Galilee  teaching  in  the  syna- 
gogues and  healing  the  sick,  what  do  you  suppose  the 
rabbis  thought  of  him? 

The  people  were  enthusiastic;  wherever  he  went  great 
crowds  followed  him.  As  soon  as  it  was  noised  abroad 
that  Jesus  had  arrived  in  a  town,  throngs  of  people 
gathered  about  the  house  where  he  was  staying.  But 
what  were  the  rabbis  thinking  about  all  this? 

WHO   WERE   THE   RABBIS? 

Every  synagogue,  where  the  congregation  was  large 
enough,  had  a  minister  who  held  the  services,  and  trans- 
lated and  explained  the  Scriptures;  he  also  taught  the 
school  during  the  week. 

Scribes. — Because  he  knew  how  to  write,  the  minis- 
ter was  called  a  "scribe,"  or  writer.  This  referred  espe- 
cially to  the  privilege  of  copying  the  Bible.  Only  very 
studious  and  careful  men  were  permitted  to  copy  the 
sacred  Law  and  other  writings  in  the  Old  Testament. 
For  when  each  copy  of  the  Bible  was  made  by  hand, 
it  was  easy  to  make  mistakes;  and  therefore  only  trained 
"writers"  were  allowed  to  do  this  work. 

Teachers  of  the  Law. — Even  more  important  than 
copying  the  Bible  was  the  explanation  of  it.  It  had  to 
be  translated,  first  of  all.  For  the  Jewish  Bible  was 
written  in  the  old  Hebrew  language;  whereas,  in  Jesus' 
time  people  spoke  a  language  called  Aramaic.    This  was 

91 


92  THE  LIFE  AND  TIMES  OF  JESUS 

about  as  different  from  Hebrew  as  our  language  to-aay 
is  different  from  that  spoken  in  England  five  hundred 
years  ago. 

Moreover,  the  Hebrew  Bible  was  written  in  conso- 
nants without  any  vowels,  and  without  any  spaces  be- 
tween the  words— like  this:  NTHBGNNNGGDCRTDT 
HHVNNDTHRTH.  (Can  you  make  this  out?— it  is 
taken  from  the  first  chapter  of  Genesis  in  English.)  As 
the  Bible  was  read  in  Hebrew  in  the  synagogue  service, 
before  being  translated  into  Aramaic,  the  vowels  had  to 
be  supplied  by  the  reader!  And  this  had  to  be  done 
"orally";  a  written  translation  was  not  allowed.  You 
must  never  think  the  Jewish  teachers  in  Jesus'  day 
were  ignorant  or  stupid  men,  since  they  could  read  and 
translate  the  Bible  under  such  conditions. 

In  addition  to  translating  the  Bible,  the  teachers  ex- 
pounded it.  They  devoted  themselves  especially  to  the 
Law  or  "Torah"  (found  in  Genesis  to  Deuteronomy,  in 
the  Old  Testament).  This  they  explained  by  certain 
methods  then  in  use,  and  showed  how  it  appHed  to  daily 
life.  They  often  told  stories  to  show  clearly  what  was 
meant.  They  made  up  "parables,"  and  quoted  prov- 
erbs; above  all,  they  quoted  the  sayings  of  great  rabbis 
in  the  past.  In  everything  but  the  quotation  of  these 
authorities,  Jesus'  preaching  in  the  synagogue  was  like 
theirs:  he  read  and  translated  the  Bible,  and  then 
explained  its  meaning.  He,  too,  used  parables  and 
stories  and  proverbs. 

The  Pharisees. — Now  most  of  the  rabbis  were  mem- 
'bers  of  a  society  or  party  called  the  Pharisees  (that  is, 
"those  separated'').  There  were  hundreds  of  Pharisees 
throughout  Palestine  in  Jesus'  time.  The  society  orig- 
inated in  the  days  of  the  Maccabees.  It  then  stood  for 
the  strict  interpretation  of  the  Law,  against  the  laxity 


OPPOSITION  OF  SCRIBES  AND  PHARISEES  93 

and  carelessness  of  those  who  would  admit  uncon- 
verted Gentiles  to  the  privileges  of  Jewish  religion. 

Later  lOn,  as  in  the  days  of  Jesus,  the  society  was 
composed  of  those  who  were  so  anxious  to  observe  the 
Law  in  every  detail  that  they  wanted  to  overdo  it: 
that  is,  by  doing  even  more  than  the  Law  required 
they  would  make  sure  of  its  complete  observance.  The 
making  of  such  rules  they  called  "building  a  fence 
about  the  Law."  One  of  these  rules  was  that  which 
prohibited  eating  with  Gentiles.  They  were  interested 
in  having  every  possible  application  of  the  Law,  and 
every  possible  breach  of  it,  fully  explained.  Then,  they 
thought,  people  would  be  better  able  to  do  the  will  of 
God;  and  the  salvation  of  Israel,  the  coming  of  God's 
Reign,  would  be  certain. 

The  Sadducees. — There  was  another  party,  known 
as  the  Sadducees.  In  Jesus'  time  its  members  were 
found  chiefly  among  the  priestly  families  in  Jerusalem. 
(Do  not  confuse  the  scribes,  who  were  rabbis  and  teach- 
ers of  the  Law  in  the  synagogues,  with  the  priests,  who 
offered  the  sacrifices  in  the  temple  at  Jerusalem.)  The 
Sadducees  did  not  accept  the  Pharisean  "fence  about 
the  Law."  They  were  satisfied  with  the  Law  just  as  it 
was  found  in  the  Old  Testament.  If  people  would  only 
follow  that,  God  would  be  satisfied,  they  thought. 
They  were  a  rich  and  contented  class  of  people,  and 
looked  upon  the  Pharisees  as  fanatics. 

THE   OPPOSITION  TO   JESUS 

Now  we  can  answer  the  question,  What  did  the  rabbis 
think  of  Jesus? 

Why  were  the  rabbis  opposed? — You  remember 
what  the  people  in  the  synagogue  at  Capernaum  said 
about  Jesus'  teaching  that  first  Sabbath.     Unlike  the 


94  THE  LIFE  AND  TIMES  OF  JESUS 

scribes,  he  taught  "as  one  having  authority"  himself, 
who  did  not  need  to  quote  the  great  teachers  of  the  past. 
No  one  would  notice  this  difference  more  quickly  than 
the  scribes  themselves. 

And  then  his  healing  of  the  sick  and  his  casting  out 
of  demons  aroused  their  opposition.  The  rabbis  them- 
selves did  the  same;  but  never  with  the  success  which 
Jesus  had.  Stories  were  told  of  their  miracles,  and 
the  people  supposed  them  to  possess  great  powers. 
But  no  rabbi  ever  had  the  following,  from  all  parts  of 
the  country,  from  hamlet  and  village  and  town,  which 
Jesus  had.  "After  all,"  they  said,  "everyone  knows 
this  teacher  from  Nazareth  is  no  rabbi!  The  people 
who  call  him  'rabbi'  are  bewitched — for  he  never  studied 
at  the  feet  of  any  learned  teacher  in  Jerusalem!  In- 
deed, it  is  a  mystery  that  he  is  even  able  to  read!" 

They  also  heard  him  teaching  the  people  about  the 
coming  of  the  Kingdom  of  God.  Not  many  of  them- 
selves had  accepted  the  message  of  John  or  received  his 
baptism.  Of  course,  they  expected  the  Kingdom  of 
God  to  come  some  time,  but  not  until  everyone  kept 
the  Law.  And  Jesus  was  teaching  the  people  things 
about  the  Law  which  were  contrary  to  their  teachings 
as  Pharisees.  For  he  paid  no  attention  whatever  to  the 
"fence"  of  rules  which  they  had  built  up.  And  if  his 
work  continued,  and  still  more  people  flocked  after  him, 
it  would  not  be  long  until  their  teaching  and  influence 
were  overthrown.  From  the  start  they  were  suspicious 
of  Jesus,  and  watched  him  with  jealous  eyes. 

Growing  opposition. — Since  they  were  thus  preju- 
diced against  him,  everything  he  did  was  misinterpreted 
by  them.  They  found  fault  with  whatever  he  said  or 
did.  At  Levi's  house  they  had  protested  against  his 
eating  with  publicans  and  sinners.     They  objected,  at 


OPPOSITION  OF  SCRIBES  AND  PHARISEES  95 

the  same  time,  that  he  and  his  disciples  were  not  ob- 
serving the  fast  appointed  for  that  day — when  even 
John's  disciples  were  keeping  the  rule.  Nor  did  Jesus 
and  his  disciples  obey  the  rule  about  dipping  their 
lingers  in  water  before  sitting  down  to  eat:  they  "ate 
with  unwashen  hands." 

When  they  asked  Jesus  why  he  did  not  obey  their 
regulations,  he  replied,  "No  one  puts  new  wine  into 
old  wine-skins.  For  the  wine,  when  it  ferments,  will 
burst  the  skins.  They  put  it,  rather,  into  fresh  skins, 
which  give  and  stretch  as  the  wine  ferments  and  so  do 
not  burst." 

What  did  he  mean?  They  were  somewhat  mystified 
by  his  answer.  Perhaps  he  meant  that  his  teaching  was 
like  new  wine;  and  the  old  customs,  which  they  were 
observing,  were  like  old  skins.  Did  he  mean  to  do  away 
with  the  old  religion  altogether?    Their  suspicions  grew. 

Healing  on  the  Sabbath. — Then,  one  Sabbath  in  the 
synagogue,  there  was  present  a  man  with  a  withered  hand; 
he  had  come  hoping  to  be  healed.  He  had  great  faith  in 
Jesus.  One  story  tells  us  that  he  was  a  mason,  and  could 
not  work  and  support  himself  with  only  one  good  hand. 

There  were  also  scribes  and  Pharisees  in  the  syna- 
gogue watching  Jesus  to  see  if  he  would  heal  on  the 
Sabbath.  For  he  could  just  as  well,  they  thought,  wait 
until  the  next  day  to  cure  the  man. 

Jesus  knew  that  they  were  watching  him,  but  he  did 
not  hesitate.  He  said  to  the  man.  "Rise  up  and  stand 
forth."  The  man  did  so.  Then  Jesus  said  to  the  Phari- 
sees, "I  ask  you.  Is  it  lawful  on  the  Sabbath  to  do  good, 
or  to  do  harm?  to  save  a  life,  or  to  destroy  it?  Not  one 
of  you,  if  his  only  sheep  fell  into  a  pit,  would  refuse  to 
rescue  it  on  the  Sabbath  day.  How  much  more  a  man 
i^  worth  than  a  sheep!"     And   he  said  to  the  man, 


96  THE  LIFE  AND  TIMES  OF  JESUS 

"Stretch  forth  your  hand."  He  stretched  it  out,  and 
it  was  restored,  just  like  the  other. 

The  Pharisees  were  angry.  Their  rules  required  the 
greatest  care  in  avoiding  work  on  the  Sabbath,  lest  the 
commandment  should  be  broken.  And  here  was  one 
who  actually  excused  the  breaking  of  the  Sabbath  in 
order  to  heal  a  man!  So  they  went  out  "filled  with 
madness,  and  communed  one  with  another  what  they 
might  do  to  Jesus"  (Luke  6:  ii). 

The  people  honor  Jesus. — However,  the  scribes  and 
Pharisees  did  not  dare  to  oppose  Jesus  publicly.  The 
multitudes  continued  to  follow  him.  His  fame  spread 
abroad  into  the  farthest  corners  of  the  country.  New 
accounts  of  his  teaching  and  healing  were  carried  by 
every  traveler.  People  came  in  throngs  to  hear  him, 
bringing  their  sick  to  be  healed.  A  great  multitude  was 
thus  gathered  together,  and  large  numbers  of  people 
came  to  him  from  all  Judaea — even  from  Jerusalem— 
from  the  seacoast  of  Tyre  and  Sidon,  from  Decapolis 
and  Perea,  and  the  country  east  of  the  Jordan.  "And 
all  the  multitude  sought  to  touch  him:  for  power  came 
forth  from  him,  and  healed  them"  (Luke  6:  19). 

STUDY  TOPICS 

1.  Who  were  the  rabbis?    Who  were  the  scribes?    The 

Pharisees?    The  Sadducees? 

2.  Why  was  the  Old  Testament  hard  for  the  people  to 

read? 

3 .  Why  were  the  scribes  and  Pharisees  opposed  to  Jesus  ? 

4.  What  was  Jesus'   answer  when  the   Pharisees  com- 

plained that  he  and  his  disciples  were  not  fasting? 
Explain  his  answer. 

5.  Read  Mark  2: 1-12;  3:  1-6;  3:  22-30;  in  order  to  dis- 

cover more  fully  the  attitude  of  the  Pharisees  toward 
Jesus. 


CHAPTER  XIV 
SEEKING  THE  LOST 

The  scribes  and  Pharisees,  as  we  have  seen,  were 
opposed  to  Jesus.  They  thought  that  his  teaching 
made  reUgion  too  easy.  For  he  paid  no  attention. to 
some  of  the  practices  which  they  said  God  required  of 
people.  And  they  disUked  the  way  in  which  he  mingled 
with  publicans  and  "sinners."  They  felt  that  he  was 
in  this  way  undermining  their  influence  with  the  people. 

They  said  that  unless  men  observed  the  Sabbath 
strictly  according  to  their  rules,  they  could  not  please 
God.  But  Jesus  said,  "The  Sabbath  was  made  for 
man — not  man  for  the  Sabbath."  God  gave  them  the 
Sabbath  as  a  day  for  rest  and  worship  and  for  doing 
good. 

They  said  that  God  loved  only  those  who  observed 
the  fasts  and  ceremonies  of  washing  and  kept  away 
from  Gentiles.  But  Jesus  said  that  God  is  our  Father 
in  heaven,  who  loves  all  His  children.  •  He  "makes  His 
sun  to  rise  on  the  evil  and  on  the  good,  and  sends  rain 
on  the  just  and  on  the  unjust."  If  we  wish  to  be  like 
our  Father  in  heaven,  we  must  love  our  neighbors,  even 
those  who  treat  us  unkindly.  We  must  even  love  our 
enemies, — all  who  treat  us  meanly  and  unfairly. 

Surely,  to  hate  and  despise  the  people  whom  we 
think  are  wicked  will  not  make  them  any  better.  But 
being  kind  to  them,  loving  them  and  praying  for  them, 
may  help  them  to  see  that  they  are  doing  wrong;  and 
then  perhaps  they  will  wish  to  do  what  is  right.  In  this 
way  Jesus'   disciples  were   to  be   like   their   heavenly 

97 


08  THE  LIFE  AND  TIMES  OF  JESUS 

Father,  and  show  forth  in  their  Hves  His  love.    That  is 
what  Jesus  meant  when  he  said: 

"Let  your  light  so  shine  before  men  that  they 
may  see  your  good  works  and  glorify  your  Father 
who  is  in  heaven." — Matthew  5: 16. 

The  Pharisees  looked  down  on  the  common  people  of 
Galilee  as  hopeless  sinners,  and  so  they  gave  them  up 
as  lost.  They  supposed  that  such  people  could  not 
possibly  enter  the  Kingdom.  But  Jesus  visited  them, 
lived  among  them,  and  taught  them  about  God  and 
His  care  for  them.  He  knew  that  many  of  them  were 
sinful;  but  he  wanted  to  win  them  to  him  and  so  lead 
them  to  repent  of  their  sins  and  serve  God.  And  to 
serve  God  meant  keeping  the  spirit  of  the  Law,  as  he 
explained  it  in  the  Sermon  on  the  Mount,  not  observing 
all  the  petty  rules  and  regulations  which  the  scribes 
laid  down.  So  while  the  Pharisees  gave  up  the  people 
of  the  land  as  lost,  Jesus  loved  them;  he  had  come,  in 
fact,  "to  seek  and  to  save  the  lost." 

THE  PARABLES  OF  THE  LOST  AND  FOUND 

Jesus  explained  this  to  the  Pharisees  when  they  ob- 
jected to  his  friendliness  with  the  "sinners."  He  told 
them  parables  which  showed  clearly  that  God  loves 
His  lost  children  and  wants  them  to  return  to  Him. 
But  the  Pharisees  were  hard-hearted  men.  They  were 
bigoted  and  narrow,  and  could  not  imagine  that  God 
cared  for  wicked  men  and  women. 

Three  of  these  parables  are  found  in  chapter  15  of 
Luke:  the  stories  of  the  Lost  Sheep,  the  Lost  Coin,  and 
the  Lost  Boy.  Let  us  read  these  in  Jesus'  own  words, 
as  Saint  Luke  has  given  them. 


SEEKING  THE  LOST  99 

The  lost  sheep. — His  first  parable  was  taken  from 
the  shepherd's  life,  which  was  familiar  to  all  his  hearers. 

"Now  all  the  publicans  ;wd  sinners  were  drawing 
near  to  hear  him.  The  Pharisees  and  scribes  mur- 
mured at  this  and  said,  'This  man  receives  sinners 
and  eats  with  them.' 

"And  he  told  them  this  parable,  saying,  'What  man 
among  you,  having  a  himdred  sheep,  and  having 
lost  one  of  them,  does  not  leave  the  ninety  and  nine 
in  the  wilderness  and  go  after  the  one  that  is  lost, 
and  look  for  it  until  he  finds  it?  When  he  has  found 
it,  he  lays  it  on  his  shoulders,  rejoicing,  and  brings 
it  home.  And  when  he  comes  home,  he  calls  to- 
gether his  friends  and  neighbors,  saying,  "Rejoice 
with  me,  for  I  have  found  my  lost  sheep." 

"  *I  tell  you  that  even  so  there  is  more  joy  in  heaven 
over  one  sinner  who  repents  than  over  ninety  and 
nine  righteous  persons  who  need  no  repentance.'  " 

— Luke  15: 1-7. 

In  those  days  farms  were  not  inclosed  within  fences. 
The  shepherds  led  their  flocks  out  into  the  wild,  open 
country,  just  as  they  do  to-day  in  the  highlands  of 
Scotland  and  out  on  the  great  western  plains  in  America. 

The  shepherd's  life  was  lonely.  Weeks  might  go  by 
in  which  he  never  met  another  human  being.  Two  or 
three  shepherds  might  watch  their  flocks  together,  but 
they  would  scarcely  meet  any  others  all  summer  long. 
They  might  see  other  shepherds  and  their  flocks  in  the 
distance;  but  they  kept  away,  so  that  their  own  sheep 
might  have  plenty  of  grass.  And  also,  if  the  flocks 
mingled  it  would  be  hard  to  separate  them  again.  Did 
you  ever  see  two  boys  keeping  their  marbles  in  the 
same  bag? 

And  so,  for  want  of  human  companionship,  the  shep- 
herds made  pets  of  their  sheep.    They  called  each  one 


loo        THE  LIFE  AND  TIMES  OF  JESUS 

by  name,  and  they  guarded  them  carefully  at  night. 
And  if  one  of  them  strayed  away  the  shepherd  would 
look  until  he  found  it.  Even,  as  Jesus  said,  if  he  had  a 
hundred  sheep  and  one  got  lost,  he  would  search  until 
it  was  found.  It  might  be  some  little  lamb,  its  wool 
caught  in  a  thorny  bush;  or  perhaps  it  had  fallen  into 
one  of  those  shallow  old  wells  which  shepherds  had  dug, 
centuries  before,  out  on  the  hillsides  of  Judaea  and  Perea. 
When  the  shepherd  found  it  he  carried  it  back  on  his 
shoulders  rejoicing. 

That  is  the  way  in  which,  said  Jesus,  God  is  pleased 
when  one  sinner  repents  and  returns  to  Hirn.  And 
Jesus  himself  was  the  good  shepherd,  seeking  and  saving 
the  lost. 

The  lost  coin. — Then  he  continued  by  asking, 

"Or  what  woman  having  ten  pieces  of  silver,  il  she 
loses  one  piece,  does  not  light  a  lamp  and  sweep  tlie 
house  and  seek  diligently  imtil  she  fmds  it?  And 
when  she  has  found  it,  she  calls  together  her  friends 
and  neighbors,  saying,  'Rejoice  with  me,  for  I  have 
found  my  money  that  was  lost !'  Even  so,  I  tell  you, 
there  is  joy  in  the  presence  of  the  angels  of  God  over 
one  sinner  who  repents." — Luke  15:8-10. 

The  houses  in  Palestine  were  small,  and  were  made 
of  clay  and  stone.  They  had  only  one  or  two  windows, 
or  perhaps  none  at  all.  In  the  daytime  their  only  light 
came  in  at  the  door;  at  night  from  a  flickering  Httle 
oil  lamp  which  rested  on  a  shelf  on  the  wall.  The  peo- 
ple were  very  poor,  and  ten  drachmae  ($1.60)  was  to 
them  a  great  amount  of  money. 

Cannot  you  see  the  woman  in  Jesus'  story,  lighting 
her  little  lamp  and  taking  her  broom— made  of  brush 
tied  to  the  end  of  a  stick — and  sweeping  carefully  until 
she  found  her  piece  of  money?    There  was  no  wooden 


SEEKING  THE  LOST  loi 

floor  in  her  house:  only  the  hard  earth  tramped  down 
smooth.  A  dark-colored  coin  would  be  hard  to  find  in 
the  dim  corners  of  such  a  house.  But  the  loss  was  great 
to  the  poor  woman,  and  she  searched  long  until  she 
found  the  money.  But  how  great  was  her  joy  when  she 
found  it! 

That  is  the  way,  said  Jesus,  God  cares  for  sinners. 
He  never  gives  them  up  as  lost.  He  never  turns  against 
them  or  hates  them.  If  only  people  could  realize  this, 
would  they  not  try  to  be  worthy  of  His  love?  Would 
they  not  make  an  effort  to  please  Him?  And  the  Phari- 
sees, if  only  they  too  could  reaUze  how  God  cares  for 
all  His  children,  would  they  not  cease  to  look  down  on 
the  poor  common  people  who  failed  to  observe  their 
difficult  rules? 

THE  YOUNG  SPENDTHRIFT  AND  HIS  BROTHER 

The  Master  then  told  them  another  story  which 
makes  this  perfectly  clear.  It  is  sometimes  called  the 
"Parable  of  the  Prodigal  Son."  But  there  were  two 
boys  in  the  story,  the  prodigal  and  his  brother;  and 
the  words  of  the  brother  were  very  important.  People 
always  put  something  of  their  own  character  into  what 
they  say.  As  you  read  the  story,  see  if  you  can  realize 
just  what  these  two  boys  were  like.  Would  you  say 
that  the  older  brother  was  justified  in  what  he  said? 

The  parable.— This  is  the  story  he  told  them: 

"A  certain  man  had  two  sons ;  and  the  younger  of 
them  said  to  his  father,  'Father,  give  me  the  portion 
of  your  property  which  will  belong  to  me  some  time.' 
And  so  the  father  divided  between  them  his  estate. 

"Not  many  days  after  this,  the  younger  son  gath- 
ered all  together  and  took  his  journey  into  a  far 
country;  and  there  he  wasted  his  wealth  in  riotous 
living.    After  he  had  spent  all  that  he  had,  a  great 


I02        THE  LIFE  AND  TIMES  OF  JESUS 

famine  arose  in  that  country,  and  he  began  to  be  in 
want. 

"So  he  went  and  hired  out  to  a  citizen  of  that 
country,  who  sent  him  out  into  the  fields  to  herd 
swine.  And  he  was  so  hungry  he  would  gladly  have 
eaten  the  carob-pods  which  the  swine  fed  upon,  had 
they  been  fit  to  eat;  and  no  man  gave  him  anjrthing. 

"But  when  he  came  to  himself  he  said,  *How  many 
hired  servants  of  my  father's  have  bread  enough  and 
to  spare — while  I  perish  here  of  himger !  I  will  arise 
and  go  to  my  father,  and  say  to  him,  "Father,  I  have 
sinned  against  heaven,  and  against  you.  I  am  no 
longer  worthy  to  be  called  your  son:  make  me  one 
of  the  hired  servants."  ' 

"So  he  arose  and  came  to  his  father.  And  while 
he  was  still  a  great  ways  off,  his  father  saw  him  and 
was  moved  with  compassion,  and  ran  out  to  welcome 
him,  falling  on  his  neck  and  kissing  him.  And  the 
son  said  to  him,  'Father,  I  have  sinned  against 
heaven,  and  against  you;  I  am  no  longer  worthy  to 
be  called  your  son:  make  me  one  of  the  hired  serv- 
ants. 

"But  the  father  said  to  his  servants,  'Bring  forth 
quickly  the  best  robe  and  put  it  on  him;  and  put  a 
ring  on  his  hand  and  shoes  on  his  feet;  and  bring 
the  fatted  calf  and  kill  it,  and  let  us  eat  and  make 
merry;  for  this  my  son  was  dead,  and  now  is  alive 
again ;  he  was  lost,  and  is  found.*  And  they  began 
to  make  merry. 

"Now  the  elder  son  had  been  in  the  field;  and  as 
he  came  home  and  drew  near  the  house  he  heard 
the  music  and  dancing.  He  called  one  of  the  serv- 
ants and  asked  what  was  the  reason  for  this.  The 
servant  replied,  'Your  brother  has  come;  and  your 
father  has  killed  the  fatted  calf,  because  he  has  re- 
ceived him  again  safe  and  sound.* 

"But  he  was  angry  and  would  not  go  in.     His 


SEEKING  THE  LOST  103 

father  came  out  and  entreated  him,  but  he  answered, 
*Lo,  all  these  years  I  have  served  you,  and  never 
transgressed  one  of  your  commandments;  and  yet 
you  never  gave  me  a  kid  that  I  might  make  merry 
with  my  friends.  But  when  this  spendthrift  comes 
home,  who  has  wasted  everything  you  gave  him, 
you  kill  for  him  the  fatted  calf !' 

"His  father  replied,  *My  boy,  you  are  always  with 
me,  and  all  that  I  have  is  yours.  It  was  right  to  make 
merry  and  be  glad  when  he  came  home.  He  is  your 
brother;  and  he  was  dead,  but  is  alive  again;  he  was 
lost,  and  is  found.'  " — Luke  15:  11-32. 

Was  the  older  brother  in  the  right?  Yes;  he  seemed 
to  be.  For  it  is  true  that  he  had  never  gone  off  and 
squandered  his  share  of  the  family  fortune;  he  had 
never  broken  his  father's  heart;  he  remained  at  home 
and  worked  hard  and  saved  his  money;  he  had  not 
even  entertained  his  friends  at  his  father's  expense. 

Now  that  is  just  the  point  of  Jesus'  story.  This 
older  brother  was  really  a  very  good  man,  but  he  lacked 
something.  And  because  he  lacked  it  he  spoiled  all 
that  he  did.  Can  you  guess  what  it  was  he  lacked? 
It  was  love.  He  was  a  very  good  person  in  other  ways, 
but  he  was  proud  and  selfish.  No  wonder  he  never 
entertained  his  friends!  Perhaps  he  hadn't  many 
friends  to  entertain!  For  the  person  who  is  proud  and 
selfish,  who  is  so  sure  that  he  himself  has  done  every- 
thing just  right  that  he  feels  he  can  criticize  others,  is 
not  the  one  to  make  many  friends. 

And  no  wonder  he  was  surly  and  mean  when  his 
brother  returned!  You  might  expect  him  to  be  glad 
and  rejoice  with  his  father  at  such  a  time.  For  the 
bad  boy  had  finally  "come  to  his  senses"  and  returned. 
But  this  older  brother  was  thinking  about  something 


I04        THE  LIFE  AND  TIMES  OF  JESUS 

else  all  the  time.  What  was  it?  Himself!  Have  you 
ever  seen  a  boy  who  criticized  his  father,  or  a  girl  who 
sf)oke  or  acted  as  if  she  knew  more  than  her  mother? 
They  were  like  this  older  brother:  for  you  will  notice 
how  he  criticized  his  father. 

The  Pharisees,  also,  were  like  the  older  brother. 
Many  of  the  people  whom  they  despised  were  sinners, 
true  enough.  And  the  Pharisees  were  good  men  in 
many  ways.  But  they  spoiled  all  they  did  by  their  pride 
and  selfishness.  They  were  always  thinking  of  them- 
selves. If  they  ever  did  think  of  others  it  was  to  criti- 
cize them  and  ''thank  God  they  were  not  as  other  men." 

That  was  the  real  reason  why  they  turned  against 
Jesus— for  he  was  always  thinking  of  others,  he  was 
always  trying  to  help  them  and  serve  them,  he  was 
always  giving  himself  for  them.  And  that  is  why,  too, 
the  Pharisees  had  no  place  in  the  Kingdom.  They  were 
"self-righteous."  God  can  do  nothing  for  the  person 
who  is  satisfied  with  himself. 

STUDY  TOPICS 

1 .  Contrast  Jesus  and  the  other  religious  teachers  of  Gali- 

lee, their  view  of  God  and  of  the  duties  of  religion. 

2.  Can  you  describe  in  your  own  words  Jesus'  teaching 

about  the  love  of  God  ?  Did  Jesus  practice  what  he 
preached?  Give  some  instances  not  found  in  this 
chapter. 

3.  Read  Luke  14:  15-24,  the  Parable  of  the  Great  Supper. 

See  if  you  can  explain  what  Jesus  meant  when  he 
used  it,  in  the  light  of  the  present  chapter. 

4.  Tell   the   story   of  the   Young   Spendthrift   and   His 

Brother,  and  discuss  the  words  of  the  older  brother. 
How  did  his  words  reveal  his  character? 

5.  What  does  it  mean  to  be  "self-righteous" ''    Are  people 

to-day  ever  in  danger  of  being  "self-righteous"? 


CHAPTER  XV 
THE  SERMON  ON  THE  MOUNT 

The  controversy  with  the  Pharisees  was  painful  to 
Jesus.  He  had  always  respected  them  as  his  religious 
teachers.  Famous  rabbis  seldom  came  to  Nazareth, 
but  he  had  heard  of  them.  Their  students  or  disciples 
were  to  be  found  everywhere  in  GaKlee.  Jesus  might 
have  expected  them  to  welcome  his  message.  Instead, 
they  were  now  doing  their  best  to  undo  his  work  and 
to  undermine  his  influence  with  the  people. 

At  the  same  time  he  knew  that  the  people  were  more 
interested  in  his  cures  than  in  his  teaching.  Belie\ing 
in  demons  as  they  did,  their  diseases  were  made  far 
worse  by  fear  and  despair.  Jesus  brought  courage  and 
hope  to  the  sick,  as  well  as  heahng.  But  what  he 
wanted  most  to  bring  was  the  message  of  the  Kingdom 
of  God.  He  wanted  to  lead  people  to  repentance.  His 
healings  were  only  a  part  of  his  work,  not  the  whole  of 
it.  At  times  he  actually  had  to  avoid  the  crowds. 
And  often,  as  he  was  teaching  the  people,  sick  persons 
or  their  friends  Vv'ould  interrupt  him  and  ask  for  healing. 

It  would  have  been  easy  to  give  up  his  real  mission 
and  become  simply  a  healer  of  men's  bodies.  But  Jesus 
was  also  the  physician  of  their  souls,  and  his  real  pur- 
pose was  to  bring  them  nearer  to  God.  He  could  not 
neglect  his  great  work  of  teaching. 

We  are  about  to  study,  in  the  next  five  lessons,  Jesus' 
teaching  as  it  is  found  in  the  "Sermon  on  the  Mount." 

HOW   THE    SERMON   CAME   DOWN   TO    US 

There  are  two  accounts  of  the  Sermon  on  the  Mount. 
One  is  found  in  Matthew  5  to  7;  the  other,  in  much 

105 


io6        THE  LIFE  AND  TIMES  OF  JESUS 

briefer  form,  in  Luke  6.  One  is  in  three  chapters;  the 
other  in  about  one  half  of  one  chapter.  Of  course,  this 
is  not  strange;  for  you  often  see  a  story  in  one  news- 
paper fining  three  columns,  and  in  another  it  is  cut 
down  to  half  of  one  column. 

There  is  another  reason  in  this  case  which  explains 
why  the  account  in  Matthew  is  so  much  longer  than  the 
one  in  Luke. 

How  the  stories  about  Jesus  came  to  be  written 
down. — For  many  years  after  Jesus'  death  and  resur- 
rection, his  disciples  went  about  through  Palestine 
preaching  the  gospel.  They  told  the  story  of  Jesus' 
great  deeds  and  repeated  his  words,  taught  them  to 
other  preachers  and  "ministers  of  the  Word,"  who  in 
turn  were  to  teach  still  others.  So,  after  a  while,  these 
stories  came  to  be  told  in  just  one  way.  And  they  were 
still  told,  of  course,  in  the  Aramaic  language. 

Then  the  missionaries  began  to  go  outside  Palestine, 
where  the  language  was  not  Aramaic,  but  Greek.  Thus 
it  became  necessary  to  write  down  the  stories  in  the 
Greek  language  for  the  use  of  these  missionaries  and 
their  converts.  This  was  the  first  written  account  of 
Jesus'  teaching,  and  though  it  included  also  a  few  stories 
of  Ms  miracles,  it  is  usually  called  the  "Sayings  of 
Jesus."  The  apostle  Matthew  is  said  to  have  written 
this  account.  It  was  probably  written  in  Caesarea  or 
Antioch,  though  possibly  in  Jerusalem.  But  as  yet  there 
was  no  written  gospel,  like  the  four  Gospels  in  our  New 
Testament. 

The  writing  of  the  Gospels. — The  time  soon  came 
when  these  new  Christians  outside  Palestine  wanted  to 
have  the  whole  story  of  Jesus'  ministry,  his  "mighty 
works,"  his  teaching,  and  the  story  of  his  last  days  on 
earth,  all  in  one  book.     So  the  "Gospel  according  to 


THE  SERMON  ON  THE  MOUNT  107 

Mark"  came  to  be  written.  This  was  the  second  writ- 
ing, about  the  life  and  teaching  of  Jesus,  that  has  come 
down  to  us.  It  was  probably  written  in  Rome,  and, 
of  course,  in  the  Greek  language— -as  almost  the  whole 
world  knew  Greek  in  those  days. 

After  a  time  other  Gospels  were  written.  That  which 
later  came  to  be  called  "According  to  Matthew"  was 
written  somewhere  in  Syria  or  Palestine,  and  was  based 
on  the  two  writings  already  described— the  "Sayings  of 
Jesus"  and  the  "Gospel  According  to  Mark."  The 
book  which  Luke  wrote  (probably  in  Antioch)  was  also 
based  on  these  two  earlier  writings.  But  in  addition 
to  the  "Sayings"  and  "Mark,"  the  authors  of  both 
"Matthew"  and  "Luke"  had  many  things  to  record 
which  they  had  heard  or  read  in  other  writings  about 
Jesus. 

Thus  it  comes  to  pass  that  of  our  Gospels  the  second 
one  ("Mark")  is  the  oldest.  "Matthew"  and  "Luke" 
have  copied  most  of  "Mark";  they  have  also  copied 
most  of  the  "Sayings  of  Jesus."  That  is  why,  for 
example,  the  story  of  Jesus'  visit  to  Capernaum,  which 
we  have  already  studied,  is  found  in  "Mark"  and  also 
in  "Matthew"  and  "Luke"— for  they  copied  it  out  of 
"Mark."  But  the  story  of  the  Sermon  on  the  Mount 
is  found  only  in  "Matthew"  and  "Luke,"  not  in  "Mark"; 
for  they  copied  it  out  of  the  now-lost  book  of  the  "Say- 
ings of  Jesus."  That  is  why  there  are  two  versions  of 
the  sermon  instead  of  three.  And  also  that  is  why  the 
two  versions  are  not  the  same.  For  both  "IMatthew" 
and  "Luke"  added,  to  what  they  found  in  the  "Sa>'ings," 
other  accounts  of  the  teaching  of  Jesus  on  the  same 
subject— "Matthew"  adding  several  times  as  much  as 
"Luke." 

The  fourth  Gospel  in  our  New  Testament,  the  one 


loS        THE  LIFE  AND  TIMES  OF  JESUS 

"According  to  John,"  is  much  later  than  the  writings 
we  have  already  named.  It  ought  perhaps  to  be  called 
the  fifth  Gospel  (i.  ''Sayings,"  2.  "Mark,"  3.  "Mat- 
thew," 4.  "Luke,"  5.  "John").  It  is  really  not  so  much 
a  narrative  of  Jesus'  life  and  teaching  as  a  wonderful 
argument  for  Christianity  and  against  the  Jewish  reli- 
gion as  taught  about  the  year  100  A.  D. 

THE  SUBJECT  OF  THE  SERMON 

Now  we  can  see  why  the  Gospels  tell  so  much  about 
Jesus'  ministry  of  healing,  and  so  little,  at  first,  about 
his  teaching  in  the  synagogues.  And  they  tell  us  almost 
nothing  about  his  f>ersonal  appearance  and  manners, 
and  his  ways  of  speaking  and  acting,  which  we  should 
so  much  like  to  know.  What  they  tell  us  is  just  what 
people  remembered  and  repeated  about  him  in  the  years 
between  his  death  and  those  first  writings  in  the  Greek 
language  which  finally  grew  into  our  Gospels.  People 
remembered  how  they  or  their  loved  ones  were  healed 
of  their  sickness.  People  remembered  some  of  his  words 
of  controversy  with  the  Pharisees,  and  how  he  silenced 
them  with  one  or  two  arguments.  They  remembered  his 
parables — the  stories  he  told  to  illustrate  his  teaching. 
The  disciples  remembered  how  they  were  called  to  fol- 
low him,  and  how  he  taught  them  about  the  mysteries 
of  the  Kingdom  of  God,  and  what  he  said  again  and 
again  about  the  conditions  of  entering  it.  And  espe- 
cially they  remembered  the  talk  he  gave  them  one  morn- 
ing on  a  hillside  in  Galilee  upon  this  very  subject.  This 
talk,  the  "Sermon  on  the  Mount,"  contains  so  much 
of  Jesus'  teaching,  as  "Matthew"  has  presented  it,  that 
we  are  going  to  study  it. 

Who  are  to  enter  the  Elingdom  of  God? — As  soon 
as  Jesus  began  to  preach  the  coming  of  God's  Kingdom 


THE  SERMON  OX  THE  MOUNT  109 

and  to  urge  people  to  repent  and  prepare  to  enter  it, 
they  asked.  "\\'hat  are  the  conditions  for  entering  it? 
WTiat  must  we  do?" 

The  Pharisees  had  their  answer  ready-  They  had 
been  saying  for  years  that  if  anyone  %vished  to  enter 
or  ''inherit"  the  Kingdom  of  God,  he  must  obey  the 
di\'ine  Law.  And  if  anyone  asked  what  this  required, 
they  would  answer  that  it  meant  much  more  than  the 
Ten  Commandments.  It  meant  keeping  the  whole 
system  of  rules  goN-eming  ceremonies  of  worship  and 
of  ordinar>'  life  which  the  scribes  and  Pharisees  had 
worked  out. 

Jesus'  answer. — But  Jesus"  answer  was  not  that  of 
the  Pharisees.  Instead  of  a  long,  complex  set  of  entrance 
requirements,  which  men  could  satisfy  only  if  they  had 
plenty  of  leisure  to  study  and  practice  their  reKgion.  he 
said,  "Fear  not,  little  flock;  it  is  your  Father's  good 
pleasure  to  give  you  the  Kingdom."  God  wants  His 
children  to  enter  the  Kingdom.  He  has  prepared  it  for 
them  to  enjoy.  He  is  not  tr\Tiig  to  keep  them  out  of  it 
— as  one  might  surmise  from  the  Pharisees*  teaching. 
Jesus'  whole  teaching  makes  it  clear  that  God  loves 
people:  and  that  to  enter  His  Kingdom  we  must  be  as 
much  like  Him  as  possible.  And  nowhere  does  Jesus 
make  this  clearer  than  in  the  Sermon  on  the  Mount 

The  Beatitudes. — The  sermon  begins  with  Jesus' 
answer  to  the  question,  "Who  are  to  enter  the  King- 
dom?" 

"Blessed  are  the  poor  in  spirit; 

For  theirs  is  the  Kingdom  of  Heaven. 
Blessed  are  the  meek; 

For  they  shall  inherit  the  earth. 
Blessed  are  they  that  mouxn; 

For  thev  shall  be  comforted. 


no        THE  LIFE  AND  TIMES  OF  JESUS 

Blessed  are  they  that  hunger  and  thirst  after  right- 
eousness ; 

For  tiiey  shall  be  filled. 
Blessed  are  the  merciful; 

For  they  shall  obtain  mercy. 
Blessed  are  the  pure  in  heart; 

For  they  shall  see  God. 
Blessed  are  the  peacemakers; 

For  they  shall  be  called  the  sons  of  God." 

— Matthew  5 :  3-9. 

These  verses  are  called  the  seven  "Beatitudes,"  or 
"Blesseds."  Do  you  think  they  describe  seven  different 
kinds  of  people?  Or  are  they  not,  rather,  seven  ways  of 
describing  the  same  kind  of  character?  Jesus  is  using 
this  way  to  explain  what  God  requires  of  those  who  are 
to  enter  or  receive  His  Kingdom.  For  the  expressions 
"inherit  the  earth,"  "be  comforted,"  "be  filled,"  and 
so  on,  all  meant  the  same  thing  to  those  who  heard  him 
preach.  Everyone  understood  him  to  mean  "they  shall 
enter  the  Kingdom  of  God." 

This  was  a  very  different  answer  from  that  of  the 
Pharisees.  Those  haughty  and  self-satisfied  teachers 
would  not,  of  course,  say  that  Jesus'  answer  was  wrong. 
But  their  teacliing  was  so  completely  concerned  with 
what  men  were  to  avoid,  with  what  they  were  not  to  do, 
that  they  lost  sight  of  what  people  really  were  to  do 
and  to  be  in  order  to  be  like  God  and  worthy  to  enter 
His  Kingdom. 

Merely  not  to  break  the  Law  is  not  enough.  No  one 
really  keeps  the  Law  when  he  thinks  only  of  not  break- 
ing it.  For  he  is  then  trying  to  go  as  close  to  breaking 
it  as  he  can  without  becoming  a  sinner.  He  is  thinking 
only  of  his  record  with  God,  and  he  does  good  only  in 
order  to  win  merit  or  reward  in  heaven.     He  doesn't 


THE  SERMON  ON  THE  MOUNT  iii 

realize  that  God  is  his  Father;  he  thinks  of  Him  only  as 
a  judge  or  a  paymaster. 

Jesus  showed  his  hearers  that  to  do  good  and  please 
God  one  riiust  want  to  he  good  and  be  like  God.  And  so 
he  described  the  character  of  the  person  who  is  good  and 
like  God,  and  therefore  fit  to  enter  and  enjoy  God's 
Kingdom. 

Don't  you  think  that  this  was  the  better  way  in  which 
to  teach  people?  Doesn't  it  make  you  want  to  be  good, 
just  to  read  Jesus'  teaching  in  the  Gospels?  What  a 
wonderful  effect  he  must  have  had  on  the  people  of 
Galilee.  Truly,  he  was  greater  than  the  scribes,  and 
they  had  never  heard  such  teaching  before.  Nor  had 
anyone  else  ever  heard  it  before. 

STUDY  TOPICS 

1 .  Was  Jesus  disappointed  in  the  Pharisees  ?    If  so,  why  ? 

2.  What  were  the  people  chiefly  interested  in  when  they 

came  to  Jesus? 

3.  Tell  how  the  stories  of  Jesus  came  to  be  written  down. 

Which  of  our  Gospels  is  the  oldest  ? 

4.  What  was  the  subject  of  the  Sermon  on  the  Mount? 

5 .  Who  did  Jesus  say  are  to  enter  the  Kingdom  of  God  ? 

Was  this  the  answer  of  the  Pharisees  ? 

6.  Memorize  the  Beatitudes,  if  you  do  not  already  know 

them. 


CHAPTER  XVI 
JESUS'  TEACHING  AND  THE  LAW 

"Do  not  think  that  I  have  come  to  destroy  the 
Law  or  the  Prophets.  I  have  not  come  to  destroy, 
but  to  fulfil.  For  truly  I  say  imto  you,  Till  heaven 
and  earth  pass  away,  one  jot  or  one  tittle  shall  in  no 
wise  pass  away  from  the  Law,  until  all  things  are 
accomplished.  Whoever  therefore  shall  break  one 
of  these  least  commandments,  and  shall  teach  men 
so,  shall  be  called  least  in  the  Kingdom  of  Heaven: 
but  whoever  shall  do  and  teach  them  shall  be  called 
great  in  the  Kingdom  of  Heaven.  For  I  tell  you, 
except  your  righteousness  exceed  the  righteousness 
of  the  scribes  and  Pharisees,  you  shall  by  no  means 
enter  the  Kingdom." — Matthew  5:  17-20. 

The  Pharisees  said  that  Jesus  Vv^as  destroying  the 
Law  and  teaching  the  people  to  disregard  it.  But  he 
replied  that  they  were  mistaken:  as  long  as  the  world 
lasts,  not  one  iota  of  the  real  Law  shall  cease  to  be 
binding.  What  he  was  doing  away  with  was  the  burden 
of  rules  which  the  Pharisees  had  added  to  the  Law. 
The  Law  itself  was  binding.  But  the  "righteousness  of 
the  scribes  and  Pharisees" — their  interpretation  of  the 
Law  and  their  rules  for  its  observance — was  not  enough. 
To  enter  the  Kingdom  of  God  one  must  do  far  more 
than  they.  And  the  Pharisees  were  the  ones  v/ho  said 
that  he  was  teaching  people  to  do  less,  not  more! 

The  Pharisees,  as  Jesus  later  said,  "tithed  mint  and 
anise  and  cummin,"  that  is,  they  taught  that  even  the 
weeds  and  wild  herbs  which  grew  in  Palestine  must  be 
tithed,  and  the  tenth  part  of  them  sent  to  the  temple; 

112 


JESUS'  TEACHING  AND  THE  LAW        113 

**but  they   neglected  the  weightier  matters  of  the  Law, 
justice  and  mercy  and  the  love  of  God." 

JESUS'  INTERPRETATION  OF  THE  LAW 

The  Law  was  the  very  heart  and  center  of  Jewish 
religion  in  the  days  of  Jesus — as  it  was  long  before  and 
has  been  ever  since.  Men  supposed,  since  it  was  found 
in  the  five  rolls  commonly  called  the  "Books  of  Moses," 
that  it  had  been  given  directly  by  God  to  Moses.  Hence 
it  was  binding  upon  everyone.  In  order  to  be  saved,  to 
enter  the  Kingdom  of  God,  it  was  necessary  to  obey 
the  Law. 

The  Law  sacred. — Jesus  had  studied  the  Law  all 
his  life.  It  was  the  first  book  he  read  in  school;  and 
whatever  was  read  in  addition  to  it  (for  example,  pas- 
sages from  the  Prophets  and  Psalms)  was  studied  as  the 
commentary  or  explanation  of  the  Law.  In  the  syna- 
gogue, the  Law  was  read  at  every  service.  The  only 
sermons  people  ever  heard  were  expositions  of  the 
"Torah,"  for  the  Law  was  the  most  sacred  thing  in  the 
world  to  the  Jews.  In  the  days  of  the  Maccabees,  their 
ancestors  had  died  rather  than  surrender  their  copies 
of  the  Law  to  be  burned  by  the  soldiers  of  Antiochus. 
They  had  inherited  all  their  forefathers'  reverence  for 
the  sacred  Book. 

The  charge  against  Jesus. — Thus  in  accusing  Jesus 
of  destroying  the  Law,  the  Pharisees  were  spreading  a 
most  dangerous  charge  against  him.  If  the  charge 
was  proved  he  might  be  put  to  death.  Even  if  the 
charge  was  untrue,  some  angry  defenders  of  the  Law 
might  seize  him  and  put  him  to  death  without  any 
trial. 

The  Sermon  on  the  Mount  makes  clear  what  was 
Jesus'  teaching  regarding  the  Law.    He  takes  up  one  by 


114        THE  LIFE  AND  TIMES  OF  JESUS 

one  some  of  the  most  important  commands  of  the  Law 
and  discusses  them. 

The  law  against  murder. — The  Law  said:  "Thou 
shalt  not  kill."  And  the  scribes  explained  this  as  fol- 
lows: "i.  Whoever  commits  murder  is  to  be  tried  and 
condemned.  2.  Whoever  calls  his  brother  a  foul  name 
[as,  for  example,  "Good-for-nothing"]  shall  be  brought 
before  the  Sanhedrin,  the  great  court  of  seventy  judges 
in  Jerusalem.  3.  Whoever  curses  his  brother  shall  be 
cast  into  the  fire  of  Gehenna  [a  place  outside  Jerusalem 
where  the  bodies  of  executed  criminals  were  cast]." 

"But  I  tell  you,"  Jesus  added,  "whoever  is  angry 
with  his  brother  is  in  danger  of  the  judgment."  For 
anger  leads  to  murder.  And  the  sin  begins,  not  when 
the  murdered  man  actually  dies,  but  long  before,  when 
the  hatred  first  began  in  the  murderer's  heart.  To  hate 
another  person  is  sin  in  the  sight  of  God.  This  shows 
how  Jesus  interpreted  the  Law.  He  showed  that  to 
keep  the  Law  perfectly  and  to  please  God  (that  is  what 
the  Pharisees  wanted  to  do)  it  is  needful  to  guard  against 
the  very  beginnings  of  sin.  It  is  not  enough  just  to  re- 
frain from  killing  someone:  you  must  not  hate  him! 

"If  therefore  you  are  in  the  temple  offering  yoiu 
gift  at  the  altar,  and  even  there  you  remember  that 
you  have  injured  your  brother,  leave  your  gift  and 
go  your  way:  first  be  reconciled  with  your  brother, 
and  then  come  and  offer  yoiu  gift." — Matthew  5: 
23-24. 

The  law  regarding  oaths. — Jesus  took  another  ex- 
ample. The  Law  said,  regarding  oaths,  that  if  one 
were  taken  it  must  be  faithfully  observed:  "Thou  shalt 
not  forswear  thyself,  but  perform  unto  the  Lord  all 
thine  oaths."     So  if  a  man  swore  to  tell  the  truth  he 


JESUS'  TEACHING  AND  THE  LAW        115 

must  do  so  without  fail.  But  Jesus  would  prohibit  all 
swearing.  "When  you  mean  yes,  say  'Yes';  when  you 
mean  no,  say  'No.'  "  A  child  of  God  should  speak  the 
truth  without  being  compelled  to  do  so  by  an  oath. 
Thus,  again,  Jesus  "fulfilled"  the  Law  by  showing  that 
it  really  meant  much  more  than  a  rule  of  the  civil  court. 

The  law  of  revenge. — The  Law  also  decreed  that 
when  one  person  had  injured  another  or  his  property, 
the  same  amount  of  injury  or  damage  could  be  de- 
manded of  the  offender:  "An  eye  for  an  eye,  a  tooth 
for  a  tooth,"  and  so  on.  And  this  might  be  understood 
to  permit  "retaliation" — the  right  to  strike  blow  for 
blow  and  "pay  back"  the  one  who  does  us  an  injury. 
"But  I  say  unto  you,"  said  Jesus,  "do  not  resist  the 
evil-doer.  If  he  strikes  you  on  one  cheek,  turn  to  him 
the  other.  If  anyone  wishes  to  sue  you  at  the  Law 
and  take  away  your  cloak,  let  him  have  your  coat  as 
well.  If  you  are  compelled  to  go  a  mile,  go  two  miles." 
If  we  return  blow  for  blow,  and  injure  the  other  person 
as  he  injures  us,  when  will  the  quarrel  end?  Jesus  shows 
how  to  end  it — by  never  letting  it  begin.  It  takes  two 
to  make  a  quarrel! 

This  is  what  Jesus  meant  when  he  quoted  the  golden 
rule,  "Do  to  others  as  you  would  have  them  do  to  you." 

"You  have  heard  it  said,  Love  your  neighbor,  hate 
your  enemy!  But  I  say,  Love  your  enemies,  pray 
for  those  who  persecute  you — in  order  that  you  may 
be  sons  of  your  Father  in  heaven.  For  He  makes 
His  sun  to  rise  on  evil  and  good  alike,  and  sends 
rain  on  the  just  and  the  unjust. 

"If  you  love  only  those  who  love  you,  what  credit 
is  it  to  you?  Even  the  publicans  do  that,  do  they 
not?  If  you  salute  your  brethren  only,  what  more 
is  that  than  everyone  does?     Even  the  Gentiles, 


ii6        THE  LIFE  AND  TIMES  OF  JESUS 

whom  you  despise,  do  that.  Instead  of  doing  as 
they  do,  you  ought  to  try  to  be  like  your  Father  in 
heaven;  for  He  is  perfect." — Matthew  5:  43-48. 

THE   WORKS   OF   PIETY 

Jesus  had  shown  that  he  was  not  "destroying"  the 
Law;  rather,  he  was  giving  it  a  deeper  meaning  than 
anyone  had  ever  before  given  to  it.  Understood  in 
Jesus'  sense,  the  Law  is  eternal.  "Till  heaven  and 
earth  pass  away,  not  one  jot  or  tittle  of  it  shall  cease 
to  be  binding." 

Perhaps  the  Pharisees — or  at  least  some  of  them — 
welcomed  this  part  of  his  teaching.  For  certain  of  their 
great  teachers  had  tried  to  show  that  the  spirit  of  the 
Law  was  greater  than  its  letter.  But  Jesus  turns  now 
to  the  standing  charge  of  the  scribes  against  him,  the 
charge  of  neglecting  the  "traditions  of  the  elders,"  the 
three  great  works  of  piety:  almsgiving,  prayer,  and 
fasting. 

Display  in  religion. — Jesus  had  said,  "Except  your 
righteousness  exceed  that  of  the  scribes  and  Pharisees, 
you  cannot  enter  the  Kingdom  of  Heaven."  And  here 
is  the  reason:  they  thought  that  "righteousness"  con- 
sisted in  doing  these  "works  of  piety."  And  since  God 
promised  a  reward  for  the  righteous,  they  could  see 
no  reason  why  their  good  deeds  should  not  be  done  as 
pubHcly  as  possible.  They  wanted  everyone  to  know 
how  good  and  righteous  they  were.  They  felt  sure  that 
after  they  had  given  lots  of  money  to  the  poor,  and 
prayed  and  fasted  often,  they  would  surely  be  allowed 
to  enter  the  Kingdom  of  God  and  be  rewarded  with 
prominent  places  therein. 

But  Jesus  said  emphatically,  "Be  careful  not  to  dis- 
play your  righteousness;  if  you  do,  you  have  no  reward 


JESUS'  TEACHING  AND  THE  LAW       117 

with  your  Father  in  heaven."  God  cannot  bless  any- 
one who  does  good  just  to  be  seen  and  praised  by  others. 
Almsgiving. — Alms  for  the  poor  were  collected  every 
Sabbath  in  the  synagogue.  People  gave  this  money  in 
addition  to  the  tithe  or  tenth  of  all  their  income  which 
was  sent  to  Jerusalem.  This  care  of  the  poor  and  needy 
is  part  of  the  noble  record  of  the  Jewish  race.  No  other 
nation  in  ancient  times  has  such  a  record.  And  Jesus 
did  not  mean  to  aboHsh  the  practice  of  almsgiving,  any 
more  than  he  did  away  with  the  sacred  Law  when  he 
said  men  must  keep  it  in  their  hearts  as  well  as  with 
their  hands  and  lips.  But  certain  men— "hypocrites," 
he  called  them,  "just  playing  a  part  like  actors  on  the 
stage"— spoil  all  their  goodness  by  their  pride  and  love 
of  display. 

"When  you  are  giving  alms,  don't  let  your  left 
hand  know  what  your  right  hand  does;  let  your 
almsgiving  be  in  secret.  Your  Father  will  see  it 
and  recompense  you." — Matthew  6: 3-4. 

Prayer. — This  same  principle  he  now  applied  to  the 
subject  of  prayer. 

"And  also  when  you  pray,  avoid  the  example  of 
the  hypocrites,  for  they  love  to  stand  and  say  their 
prayers  in  the  synagogue  and  on  the  street-comers, 
that  they  may  be  seen  of  men." 

You  could  see  them  any  day,  at  the  hours  of  prayer! 

"I  tell  you,  they  have  received  their  reward  al- 
ready ! 

"But  when  you  pray,  go  into  your  chamber  and 
shut  the  door.  Pray  to  your  Father  in  secret,  and  He 
who  sees  in  secret  will  hear  you." — Matthew  6 :  5-6. 

Fasting. — Fasting  was  the  third  pious  work  taught 
by  the  Pharisees.     To  fast,  or  go  without  food,  was  to 


ii8        THE  LIFE  AND  TIMES  OF  JESUS 

the  Jews  a  sign  of  mourning  and  grief,  and  so  expressed 
sorrow  for  sin.  They  also  thought  that  it  made  sure 
God's  answer  to  their  prayers,  just  as  a  spoiled  child 
refuses  food  until  his  father  or  mother  gives  him  what  he 
wants.  So  the  Pharisees  added  many  fast  days  to  their 
calendar,  including  Monday  and  Thursday  of  every 
week  (see  Luke  i8:  12).  But  Jesus  and  his  disciples  did 
not  observe  them. 

The  ''hypocrites"  fasted,  just  as  they  gave  alms  and 
prayed,  to  be  seen  of  men.  "If  you  are  in  earnest  about 
it,"  said  Jesus,  "wash  your  face  and  anoint  your  head — 
just  as  you  do  every  other  day.  Let  your  fasting  be 
seen  by  God  alone,  not  by  men."  In  order  to  keep  the 
Law,  to  be  accepted  by  God,  and  enter  the  Kingdom  as 
God's  child,  it  is  necessary  to  have  the  Law  "written 
in  your  heart,"  as  the  prophet  said.  You  not  only  have 
to  do  something.  You  must  also  be  something.  You 
must  live  every  day  as  a  child  of  God  should  live. 

One  day  Jesus  was  asked  by  a  lawyer,  "What  is  the 
great  commandment  in  the  Law?"    He  replied, 

"Thou  Shalt  love  the  Lord  thy  God  with  all  thy 
heart  and  with  all  thy  soul  and  with  all  thy  mind. 
This  is  the  first  and  great  commandment,  and  the 
second  is  like  unto  it:  Thou  shalt  love  thy  neigh- 
bor as  thyself.  On  these  two  commandments  is 
based  the  whole  Law,  and  the  Prophets  as  well." 

— Matthew  22 :  35-40, 

This,  as  one  of  the  great  rabbis  said,  was  the  whole 
Law,  and  all  the  rest  was  commentary. 

STUDY  TOPICS 

I.  What  did  Jesus  say  about  the  law  against  murder?    Is 
it  a  sin  to  be  angry  ?    Is  it  wrong  to  seek  revenge  ? 


JESUS'  TEACHING  AND  THE  LAW       119 

2.  Why  should  oaths  be  unnecessary  among  the  disciples 

of  Jesus? 

3.  What  were  the  "works  of  piety"  ?    What  did  Jesus  say 

about  the  display  of  one's  religion? 

4.  Did  Jesus  do  away  with  almsgiving,  fasting,  or  prayer? 

How  did  he  say  people  should  practice  them? 

5.  Can  you  think  of  any  commandment  which  the  Sum- 

mary of  the  Law  does  not  include?    Name  some  of 
the  commandments  which  it  does  cover. 

6.  Read  again  the  story  of  the  Good  Samaritan  (Luke 

jQ.  25-37).    What  does  the  story  have  to  do  with 
Jesus'  teaching  about  the  Law? 


CHAPTER  XVII 
PRAYER  AND  THE  LORD'S  PRAYER 

"When  you  pray,  do  not  use  empty  repetitions,  as 
the  Gentiles  do:  for  they  think  that  they  shall  be 
heard  by  their  gods  because  of  their  many  words. 
Do  not  imitate  them.    For  your  Father  knows  what 
you  need,  before  you  ask  Him. 
"After  this  manner,  rather,  pray  ye : 
'  "  'Our  Father,  who  art  in  heaven, 
Hallowed  be  Thy  name. 
Thy  Kingdom  come. 

Thy  will  be  done  on  earth  as  it  is  in  heaven. 
Give  us  this  day  our  daily  bread. 
Forgive  us  ouj  debts,  as  we  also  have  for- 
given our  debtors. 
And  bring  us  not  into  temptation,  but  deliver 
us  from  evil.' 
"For  if  you  forgive  others  their  trespasses,  your 
Father  will  also  forgive  you.    But  if  you  do  not  for- 
give, you  cannot  expect  to  be  forgiven." — Matthew 
6:7-15. 

The  "Lord's  Prayer"  has  now  been  in  use  for  nearly 
two  thousand  years.  Millions  of  Christians  have  said 
it,  again  and  again.  And  yet  it  has  not  grown  old. 
No  one  has  ever  become  tired  of  it,  or  ceased  to  learn 
from  it  as  he  used  it.  We  shall  never  know  it  so  well 
that  it  can  teach  us  nothing  more.  And  so  we  are  to 
study  it  in  this  chapter. 

To  be  learned. — The  proper  way  to  study  it  is  to 
memorize  it,  if  you  have  not  already  done  so,  and  to 
use  it  every  day.    A  person  learns  to  pray  by  praying. 


PRAYER  AND  THE  LORD'S  PRAYER  121 

And  Jesus  gave  this  prayer  to  his  disciples  in  order  to 
teach  them  how  to  pray,  not  just  to  give  them  a  beau- 
tiful prayer  to  admire. 

Jesus'  own  example. — Jesus  himself  prayed  often. 
As  a  boy  he  learned  to  pray  both  at  home  and  at  syna- 
gogue. By  the  time  he  became  a  man  praying  had 
become  a  firmly  estabhshed  habit.  He  would  not  think 
of  making  a  great  choice  in  his  life  without  first  praying 
over  it.  Often  he  spent  long  hours  of  the  night  in  prayer, 
as  we  have  seen  him  do  after  the  day  in  Capernaum, 
and  before  choosing  the  twelve  apostles.  After  his  bap- 
tism he  even  spent  weeks  in  the  wilderness,  alone  with 
God.  If  ever  anyone  could  teach  others  how  to  pray, 
it  was  Jesus. 

HOW  TO   PRAY 

The  prayer  which  Jesus  taught  the  disciples  is  very 
brief.  It  was  not  like  the  long  prayers  which  the  "hypo- 
crites" offered  on  the  street-corners.  God  hears  every 
prayer  that  comes  from  the  heart,  whether  it  is  long 
or  short.  It  is  not  necessary  to  say  over  and  over  the 
same  petitions,  as  the  Gentiles  did.  For  God  knows, 
even  before  we  ask  Him,  what  we  have  need  of. 

What  prayer  is. — God  wants  us  to  pray  to  Him,  but 
not  just  in  order  that  we  may  tell  Him  things  we  need. 
Because  He  is  our  Father,  He  wants  us  to  know  Him 
and  love  Him.  Prayer,  then,  isn't  just  asking  God  for 
things  we  happen  to  want;  it  is  talking  with  God,  and 
learning  to  know  Him  better. 

And  so  the  spirit  in  which  we  should  come  to  Him  is 
made  up  of  humility,  faith,  and  love:  i.  Humility — 
that  means  not  thinking  about  ourselves  and  our  own 
wants  first  of  all.  2.  Faith — that  means  believing  that 
He  loves  us  and  cares  for  us,  and  will  see  that  we  receive 


122        THE  LIFE  AND  TIMES  OF  JESUS 

what  we  really  need.  3.  Love — not  only  love  for  Him, 
but  at  the  same  time  love  for  other  persons.  For  God 
does  not  love  us  alone;  He  loves  all  His  children. 

THE   lord's   prayer 

So  the  prayer  begins  with  an  act  of  worship — 

"Our  Father,  who  art  in  heaven, 
Hallowed  be  Thy  name." 

This  might  be  called  the  salutation  or  address  of  our 
prayer.  Just  as  people  in  the  time  of  Jesus,  when  they 
met,  bowed  and  said,  "Peace  be  unto  you,"  and  just  as 
anyone  on  entering  the  presence  of  a  king  knelt  before 
him  in  submission,  so  the  disciples  were  to  come  into  the 
spiritual  presence  of  their  Father  with  an  act  of  worship 
and  adoration. 

We  should  think,  first  of  all,  not  about  ourselves  and 
our  needs,  but  about  God's  goodness  and  glory.  It  is 
He  who  made  all  the  world,  the  sunshine,  and  stars  and 
winds  and  trees  and  rivers.  He  sends  His  rain  upon 
the  earth  to  bless  it  and  make  it  fruitful.  He  brings  to 
pass  springtime  and  summer,  autumn  and  winter.  Our 
food,  our  clothes,  the  very  air  we  breathe  and  the  water 
we  drink,  come  from  Him. 

"Back  of  the  loaf  is  the  snowy  flour, 
And  back  of  the  flour  the  mill; 
But  back  of  the  mill  is  the  seed  and  the  shower 
And  the  sun,  and  the  Father's  will." 

It  is  to  God  that  we  must  look  for  all  things.  The  true 
prayer,  then,  begins  with  worship. 

"Thy  Kingdom  comie."— The  first  petition  is  for 
the  coming  of  God's  Kingdom.  This  is  what  the  Jews 
were  expecting;  it  was  the  subject  of  Jesus'  preaching. 


PRAYER  AND  THE  LORD'S  PRAYER  123 

The  disciples  were  to  make  it  the  very  first  object  of 
their  prayers  to  the  Father  in  heaven. 

"Thy  Kingdom  come, 
Thy  will  be  done  on  earth  as  it  is  in  heaven." 

That  is  what  God's  Kingdom  is.  No  better  definition 
was  ever  given.  It  is  the  Reign  of  God  in  all  the  world, 
when  men  on  earth  will  do  His  will,  even  as  the  angels 
now  do  it  in  heaven. 

The  Jews  were  expecting  a  kingdom  with  an  earthly 
king  to  be  sent  them  by  God.  But  Jesus  taught  that,  as 
some  of  the  old  prophets  had  said,  God  Himself  would 
"be  in  the  midst  of  them  and  be  their  God."  There  are 
now  in  the  world  so  many  things  contrary  to  the  will  of 
God — crime  and  hatred  and  selfishness  and  pride  and 
ignorance  and  disease  and  sin.  When  the  Reign  of  God 
is  fully  established  all  these  will  cease  to  exist.  It  is  for 
the  coming  of  this  perfect  Rule  of  God  that  the  disciples 
were  to  pray,  and  for  which  Christians  are  praying  still. 

This  meant  far  more  than  the  freedom  of  the  Jews 
from  the  oppressive  rule  of  Rome.  It  meant  the  free- 
dom of  every  child  of  God,  everywhere  in  the  world, 
from  the  oppression  of  sin  and  ignorance  and  sickness 
and  whatever  else  leads  him  away  from  God  and  true 
happiness. 

"Our  daily  bread."— Then,  but  not  until  they  had 
asked  for  these  greater  blessings,  were  the  disciples  to 
pray  for  their  own  needs. 

"Give  us  to-day  our  daily  bread." 

That  doesn't  mean  riches  or  grand  houses  or  servants 
or  barns  filled  and  bursting  with  bountiful  harvests.  It 
means,  "Give  us  enough  to  meet  our  needs  from  day  to 
day,  so  that  we  may  be  enabled  to  do  Thy  will." 


124        THE  LIFE  AND  TIMES  OF  JESUS 

And  it  doesn't  mean  that  we  are  to  sit  down  and  ask 
God  to  send  us  what  we  need,  without  our  working  for 
it.  "God  helps  those  who  help  themselves."  As  the 
Law  had  said,  "It  is  He  who  gives  you  power  to  get 
wealth"  (Deuteronomy  8:  i8).  But  it  means  that  we 
ought  to  trust  in  our  heavenly  Father — "Who  knows 
what  things  you  have  need  of,  before  you  ask  Him" — 
and  to  trust  Him  to  care  for  us  if  we  do  our  part.  He 
feeds  the  birds;  but  the  birds  are  not  idle.  They  build 
their  nests,  they  search  for  food,  they  bring  food  home 
to  their  nestlings. 

"Forgive  us  our  debts." — We  must  not  forget  to 
ask  God  to  forgive  our  sins.  For  when  we  do  wrong  we 
not  only  injure  ourselves  or  others,  we  grieve  the  heart 
of  our  heavenly  Father.  Just  as  boys  and  girls  hurt  the 
feelings  of  their  parents  when  they  do  wrong,  so  we 
injure  our  Father  in  heaven  when  we  sin. 

But  if  we  expect  God  to  forgive  us  we  must  also  for- 
give everyone  who  has  injured  us.    We  are  to  say, 

"Forgive  us  our  debts, 
As  we  have  already  forgiven  our  debtors." 

Our  "debts"  are  our  trespasses,  acts  of  disobedience  to 
God;  our  "debtors"  are  those  who  we  tliink  have  in- 
jured us  and  owe  us  something — an  apology  or  the 
"making  up"  of  a  quarrel. 

One  day  Peter  asked  Jesus,  "Master,  how  many  times 
ought  I  to  forgive  my  brother  when  he  sins  against  me? 
— seven  times?"  Jesus  answered,  "I  do  not  say  until 
seven  times,  but  until  seventy  times  seven!"  As  there 
is  no  limit  to  God's  forgiveness,  if  we  repent  and  are 
truly  sorry  for  our  sins,  so  there  should  be  no  limit  to 
our  forgiveness  of  others. 


PRAYER  AND  THE  LORD'S  PRAYER  125 

"Bring  us  not  into  temptation." — Lastly,  the  dis- 
ciples were  to  pray, 

"Bring  us  not  into  temptation, 
But  deliver  us  from  evil." 

Jesus  had  been  through  temptation.  He  knew  what  it 
means  for  one's  faith  to  be  tried.  He  also  knew  that, 
very  often,  what  tests  people's  faith  the  most  is  not  a 
desire  to  sin,  but  some  trouble,  sickness,  or  misfortune. 
They  often  feel  that  God  doesn't  care  for  them,  that  He 
is  not  interested  in  them,  if  He  permits  them  to  suffer. 
So  the  disciples  were  told  to  pray  that  they  might  not 
be  led  into  the  trial  of  their  faith,  but  be  delivered  from 
all  evil. 

No  one  should  suppose  that  God  sends  temptation. 
When  anyone  feels  the  desire  to  do  wrong,  to  disobey 
God,  it  is  something  within  himself  that  makes  the 
temptation  possible.  God  is,  rather,  the  One  who 
strengthens  us  to  resist  temptation  and  remain  true  to 
Him.  He  wants  His  children  to  be  brave,  strong,  obe- 
dient, and  loyal;  and  He  gives  them  the  power  to  over- 
come all  temptation.  We  must  ask  Him  for  it,  and  we 
must  use  it! 

Conclusion. — It  will  do  us  little  good  to  study  the 
teaching  of  Jesus  or  the  Lord's  Prayer  unless  we  make 
use  of  it  in  our  daily  lives.  It  doesn't  make  any  boy  a 
good  mechanic  merely  to  listen  to  a  lecture  on  manual 
training.  One  doesn't  become  a  Boy  Scout  simply  by 
reading  a  book  on  Scouting.  One  learns  only  by  doing. 
And  that  is  just  what  Jesus  said : 

"It  is  not  everyone  who  calls  me  Master,  who  is 
going  to  enter  the  Kingdom  of  God,  but  only  the  one 
who  does  the  will  of  my  Father  in  heaven."— Mat- 
thew 7:21. 


126        THE  LIFE  AND  TIMES  OF  JESUS 

The  best  way  to  learn  Jesus'  teaching — to  know  what  it 
really  means — is  to  obey  it.  The  way  to  learn  the  mean- 
ing of  the  Lord's  Prayer  is  to  use  it  every  day.  It  should 
be  the  model  and  pattern  for  all  our  prayers. 

STUDY  TOPICS 

1.  Memorize  the  Lord's  Prayer,  if  you  have  not  already 

done  so.  Find  and  read  carefully  at  least  one  other 
prayer  offered  by  Jesus.  See  Luke  10:21;  22:42; 
John  II :  41 ;  17 :  1-26;  Luke  23  :  46. 

2.  Did  Jesus  often  pray?     What  is  prayer? — give  the 

briefest  definition  you  can.  Is  it  asking  God  to 
give  us  whatever  we  want?  What  habits  of  prayer 
have  you  formed? 

3.  Explain  each  of  the  petitions  of  the  Lord's  Prayer. 

4.  How  did  Jesus  define  the  Kingdom  of  God?    Was  this 

what  his  people  expected  at  that  time? 

5.  What  is  the  proper  spirit  in  which  to  pray?     Why 

should  we  forgive  others  before  we  pray  for  the  for- 
giveness of  our  own  sins?    Read  Matthew  5 :  23-24. 

6.  Look  up  and  read  the  story  that  Jesus  told  about  the 

two  men  who  went  up  to  the  temple  to  pray  (Luke 
18:9-14).  Describe  these  two  men  in  your  own 
words.  What  was  the  fault  of  the  first  man?  What 
was  the  virtue  of  the  second? 

7.  Look  up  the  story  which  Jesus  told  Peter  when  he 

asked  how  often  he  was  to  forgive  the  person  who 
offended  him  (Matthew  18:  21-35).  Tell  it  in  your 
own  words. 


CHAPTER  XVIII 
TRUST  IN  OUR  HEAVENLY  FATHER 

In  those  days  people  often  thought  that  God  was 
unwilling  to  take  care  of  them.  The  Kingdom  had  not 
yet  appeared.  They  were  still  paying  taxes  every  year 
to  the  Romans.  And  whenever  the  harvest  was  poor 
they  thought  that  God  was  angry  with  them. 

The  Pharisees  said  that  God  did  not  love  them  be- 
cause they  were  sinful  and  did  not  keep  the  Law  per- 
fectly. If  they  wanted  God  to  be  good  to  them,  and 
send  the  Messiah  to  be  their  King,  they  must  carefully 
obey  the  Law,  go  to  the  temple  more  regularly,  avoid 
the  defilement  of  certain  kinds  of  food,  and  keep  away 
from  their  Gentile  neighbors. 

JESUS'   TEACHING  ABOUT   GOD 

Jesus'  whole  idea  of  religion  was  different  fom  this. 
To  be  sure,  men  must  keep  the  Lav/ — but  that  meant 
loving  your  neighbor,  forgiving  your  enemy,  keeping 
peace  and  avoiding  quarrels;  it  meant  telling  the  truth, 
becoming  pure  in  mind  and  heart  as  well  as  deed;  it 
meant  being  humble  and  not  proud,  thinking  little  of 
one's  self  and  much  of  others.  That  was  obeying  the 
Law  as  God  expected  His  children  to  obey  it. 

God  is  a  loving  Father. — For  God  is  not  a  stem 
king,  like  the  far-away  emperor  in  Rome,  who  sent 
decrees  which  must  be  obeyed  or  people  would  be  pun- 
ished. He  is  their  Father;  and  His  Law  showed  the 
way  in  which  men  can  be  truly  happy.  If  they  keep 
this  Law,  then  God's  Kingdom  will  come  indeed.     If 

127 


128        THE  LIFE  AND  TIMES  OF  JESUS 

people  will  do  this  they  shall  be  allowed  to  enter  the 
Kingdom  when  it  comes. 

Since  God  is  our  Father,  and  "knows  what  we  need 
before  we  ask  Him,"  people  ought  not  to  worry  over 
everything  as  they  do,  over  money  and  clothes  and 
positions.  If  they  will  just  do  their  part,  faithfully  and 
well,  and  trust  in  God,  He  will  take  care  of  them.  In- 
stead of  "laying  up  treasures  on  earth,  where  moth  and 
rust  consume,  and  where  thieves  break  in  and  steal," 
men  ought  to  "lay  up  treasures  in  heaven,  where  neither 
moth  nor  rust  consume,  nor  thieves  break  in  and  steal. 
For  where  your  treasure  is,  there  will  your  heart  be 
also"  (Matthew  6:  19-21). 

"No  man  can  serve  two  masters — ^for  either  he 
will  hate  one  of  them  and  love  the  other,  or  else 
obey  one  and  despise  the  other.  You  cannot  serve 
God  and  mammon  (riches). 

"And  so  I  say,  Do  not  be  anxious  over  your  affairs 
— over  what  to  eat  or  drink  or  wear.  Is  not  life  more 
than  food,  and  the  body  more  than  raiment? 

"See  the  birds  of  the  air!  They  do  not  sow  or 
reap  or  gather  into  bams;  and  yet  your  heavenly 
Father  feeds  them.  Are  you  not  of  much  more  value 
than  they? 

"And  why  are  you  anxious  over  raiment?  See  the 
lilies  in  the  fields,  how  they  grow.  They  do  not  toil 
nor  spin.  And  yet  I  tell  you  that  even  Solomon  in 
all  his  glory  was  not  arrayed  like  one  of  these.  If 
God  so  clothes  the  wild  flowers  of  the  field,  which 
blossom  to-day  and  to-morrow  are  burned  in  the 
oven,  will  He  not  much  more  clothe  you?  Why  do 
you  not  trust  Him? 

"Therefore,  do  not  burden  yourselves  with  cares, 
saying,  'What  shall  we  eat?'  or,  'What  shall  we 
drink?'    or,    'Wherewithal    shall    we   be    clothed?' 


TRUST  IN  OUR  HEAVENLY  FATHER     129 

After  all  these  things  do  the  Gentiles  seek.  But 
your  heavenly  Father  knows  that  you  need  them. 
Instead,  seek  first  His  Kingdom  and  His  righteous- 
ness; and  all  things  needful  shall  be  added  unto 
you." — Matthew  6:  24-33. 

JESUS'   OWN  EXAMPLE 

Whatever  Jesus  taught  he  also  put  in  practice.  So 
it  was  with  these  words  about  trust  in  God. 

Crossing  the  lake. — One  evening,  after  he  had  been 
teaching  the  people  on  the  shore  of  the  lake,  he  said  to 
liis  disciples,  "Let  us  go  across  to  the  other  side."  So 
they  set  out.  Soon  the  sun  disappeared,  and  the  twi- 
light came  on,  and  the  stars  began  to  shine.  As  they 
sailed  on  through  the  night  Jesus  fell  asleep  with  his 
head  on  the  steersman's  rough  mat  in  the  stern  of  the 
boat.  For  he  was  tired  out  after  his  day  of  teaching 
and  healing,  constantly  surrounded  by  the  multitude. 

The  storm. — On  the  Lake  of  Galilee  one  never  knew 
when  a  storm  would  come.  Any  journey  was  likely  to 
be  interrupted  by  a  squall.  All  of  a  sudden  the  cold 
wind  dashed  down  from  the  mountain  tops  of  Hermon 
and  Lebanon  into  the  hollow  basin  of  the  lake,  where 
during  the  day  the  atmosphere  had  become  hot  and 
sultry.  In  a  few  moments  the  calm  lake  was  covered 
with  waves,  and  the  boat  was  at  the  mercy  of  wind  and 
storm.  The  water,  pouring  over  its  sides,  began  to  fill 
the  little  vessel.    The  disciples  were  thoroughly  alarmed. 

Jesus'  faith. — Still  Jesus  slept.  He  had  no  fears. 
Safe  in  his  Father's  keeping,  he  could  sleep  like  a  little 
child.  But  the  frightened  disciples  awoke  him.  "Mas- 
ter, Master,"  they  cried  out,  "we  are  perishing!"  Jesus 
arose  and  calmly  spoke  to  the  wind  and  waves,  saying, 
"Peace,  be  still."    The  wind  ceased,  the  waves  grew  less 


I30        THE  LIFE  AND  TIMES  OF  JESUS 

violent,  and  there  was  a  great  calm.  Then  turning  to 
the  disciples,  he  asked,  ''Where  is  your  faith?"  But 
they  were  still  frightened,  and  made  no  answer.  In- 
stead, they  marveled,  saying  one  to  another,  "Who  then 
is  this,  that  even  the  winds  and  the  sea  obey  him?" 

THE   SECRET   OF  JESUS'    COURAGE 

That  was  the  faith  which  Jesus  taught  and  which  he 
lived  every  day  of  his  Hfe.  People  do  not  suddenly  be- 
come brave  in  the  midst  of  danger,  as  in  storms  and  at 
fires.  They  have  to  be  brave  all  the  time.  When  the 
danger  comes  they  are  ready.  This  is  what  Scouting 
teaches,  "Be  prepared." 

What  gave  Jesus  his  courage  in  danger  was  his  faith 
and  trust  in  God  at  all  times.  Was  he  afraid  of  the 
Pharisees  and  their  plans  to  undo  his  work?  Not  at  all! 
Was  he  afraid  of  Herod,  who  had  put  John  in  prison  and 
might  imprison  him  also?  Not  in  the  least.  And  we 
shall  see  how  his  courage  never  failed  him,  even  when 
he  stood  unjustly  condemned  before  Pilate,  and  knew 
that  he  was  to  be  crucified. 

This  faith,  or  trust  in  God,  was  just  what  the  people 
in  Galilee  needed.  Their  religion  was  one  of  fear,  and 
their  lives  were  full  of  anxiety.  When  Jesus  looked  at 
the  multitudes  following  him  he  was  "moved  with  com- 
passion for  them,  for  they  were  distressed  and  scattered 
like  sheep  without  a  shepherd."  So  he  said  to  his  fol- 
lowers one  day, 

"Come  unto  me,  all  ye  that  labor  and  are  heavy 
laden,  and  I  will  refresh  you.  Take  my  yoke  upon 
you,  and  learn  of  me.  For  I  am  meek  and  lowly  in 
heart,  and  you  shall  find  rest  unto  your  souls.  For 
my  yoke  is  easy  and  my  burden  is  light." — Matthew 
1 1 :  28-30. 


•    TRUST  IN  OUR  HEAVENLY  FATHER     131 

^  That  was  one  secret  of  Jesus'  courage  and  strength— 
his  trust  in  God.  That  is  what  he  wanted  his  followers 
to  learn. 

To  ''take  his  yoke"  meant  to  accept  his  teaching  and 
follow  his  example.  That  is  what  the  people  in  GaUlee 
needed  most  to  learn.  Do  you  think  there  are  any  peo- 
ple to-day  who  need  to  learn  it? 

STUDY  TOPICS 

1.  Why  had  the  people  of  Palestine  come  to  think  that 

God  was  no  longer  willing  to  care  for  them }  Is  it  pos- 
sible for  us  to  make  the  same  mistake  to-day  ? 

2.  What  did  Jesus  teach  about  the  way  in  which  the  Law 

should  be  kept?  Does  this  teaching  still  hold  for  us 
now? 

3.  What   did   Jesus   mean    by    "treasures   in   heaven"? 

What  does  "mammon"  mean? 

4.  How  does  Jesus'  action  in  the  storm  on  the  lake  teach 

us  the  secret  of  true  courage  ? 

5.  Read  Luke  11 :  5-13 ;  12  :  13-34.    This  assignment  con- 

tains Luke's  version  of  the  part  of  the  Sermon  on 
the  Mount  we  are  now  studying.  Note  the  bearing 
of  each  passage  on  the  teaching  about  trust  in  God. 

6.  Select  from  the  Bible  passages  quoted  in  this  chapter 

the  several  sentences  you  like  best  and  memorize 
them. 


CHAPTER  XIX 
THE  TWO  HOUSES 

Like  some  persons  to-day,  the  Pharisees  thought 
there  were  two  kinds  of  people  in  the  world;  one  kind 
whom  God  loves,  the  other  whom  He  does  not  love. 
The  good  kind,  whom  God  loves,  were  the  faithful 
keepers  of  the  Law,  the  "true  Israel."  The  bad  kind 
were  the  Gentiles  or  "heathen,"  and  those  Jews — 
worse  than  heathen — who  never  troubled  themselves  to 
learn  the  Law  and  so  failed  to  keep  it.  And  "the  Law" 
meant  to  the  Pharisees  not  only  the  commandments, 
but  also  their  added  ceremonies  and  rules. 

Now  there  really  are  both  good  people  and  bad  peo- 
ple in  the  world,  although  most  people  are  neither  ex- 
tremely good  nor  terribly  bad.  But  what  distinguishes 
good  from  bad,  said  Jesus,  is  not  learning  the  rules  an  I 
observing  the  ceremonies  of  the  Pharisees.  For  people 
might  know  a  very  great  deal  about  religion,  and  yet 
fail  to  put  it  in  practice.  That  was  one  grave  fault  of 
the  Pharisees.  They  talked  about  religion  all  the  time, 
but  they  "neglected  the  weightiest  matters  of  the  Law: 
justice  and  mercy  and  faith." 

WHAT  MAKES   A  PERSON   "GOOD"? 

What  distinguishes  the  good  man  from  the  bad,  said 
Jesus,  is  this:  the  good  man  does  what  he  knows  to  be 
right.  He  is  not  satisfied  with  talking  about  it.  He 
has  to  put  it  into  practice. 

"By  their  fruits." — Among  the  followers  of  Jesus 
there  were  some  persons  who  truly  loved  God  and  who 

132 


THE  TWO  HOUSES  133 

were  fit  to  enter  His  Elingdom;  while  there  were  also 
others  who  needed  first  to  repent  before  they  could 
enter.  How  did  Jesus  tell  the  difference  between  them? 
His  way  was  very  simple.    He  said: 

"By  their  fruits  ye  shall  know  them.  Do  men 
gather  grapes  of  thom-bushes,  or  figs  of  brambles? 

"Even  so,  every  good  tree  brings  forth  good  fruit; 
but  a  bad  tree  produces  bad  fruit.  A  good  tree  can- 
not bring  forth  bad  fruit,  nor  a  bad  tree  good  fruit. 
.  .  .  Therefore  by  their  fruits  ye  shall  know  them." 

— Matt.  7 :  16-20. 

The  two  houses. — Then  he  told  his  hearers  a  story 
to  show  still  more  clearly  what  he  meant.  For  he  meant 
that  there  is  all  the  difference  in  the  world  between  a 
man  or  woman  or  boy  or  girl  who  actually  tries  to  do 
what  is  right,  and  the  person  who  admires  Jesus'  beau- 
tiful teaching  and  yet  never  puts  it  in  practice. 

Two  men  were  building  houses  beside  a  river.  One 
of  them  dug  down  to  the  solid  rock  and  laid  his  foun- 
dation. It  took  a  long  time  and  a  good  deal  of  work 
to  build  his  house  in  that  way.  But  when  he  had  it 
finished  it  was  a  well-built  house. 

Shortly  after  he  had  finished  his  house  there  came  a 
great  storm.  The  wind  roared,  the  rain  fell  in  torrents, 
the  waters  of  the  river  rose  and  beat  against  the  walls 
of  the  house.  But  the  walls  held,  and  little  damage  was 
done  to  the  property. 

The  other  man,  who  was  careless  and  lazy,  built  his 
house — of  all  places! — on  the  sand.  He  built  no  foun- 
dation, but  just  started  his  walls  on  the  ground.  He 
used  good  stone,  and  when  he  had  finished  the  house  it 
looked  as  well  as  his  neighbor's.  People  passing  by, 
unless  they  were  told  that  his  house  had  no  foundation, 
would  never  have  suspected  it. 


134        THE  LIFE  AND  TIMES  OF  JESUS 

But  what  happened  to  this  house  when  the  great 
storm  came?  The  waters  rose,  the  sand  was  washed 
away,  and  great  holes  began  to  appear  beneath  the 
walls.  The  storm  continued,  and  it  was  not  long  until 
the  house  fell  in — a  complete  ruin.  All  the  labor  of 
building  it  was  wasted.  No  house  remained  to  shelter 
the  man  and  his  family — only  a  tumbled  heap  of  stone 
mixed  with  sand.  It  was  because  it  lacked  a  foundation 
that  it  went  to  pieces. 

The  man  who  built  a  foundation  is  the  man  who 
comes  to  me,  said  Jesus,  and  hears  my  words  and  does 
them.  But  the  man  who  hears  and  does  them  not — he 
is  the  man  whose  house  fell  in.  The  foundation  is  doing 
what  you  know  to  be  right. 

THE   LAST  JUDGMENT 

Not  talking  about  religion,  but  doing  the  will  of  God: 
that  is  what  counts,  according  to  the  teaching  of  Jesus. 
You  remember  his  question,  ''Why  do  you  call  me 
Master  and  not  do  what  I  say?  Not  everyone  who 
calls  me  'Lord'  will  enter  God's  Kingdom,  but  only 
those  who  do  the  will  of  my  Father  in  heaven." 

Doing  the  will  of  God. — People  often  spoke  of  the 
Kingdom  of  God,  how  wonderful  it  would  be,  how 
happy  those  who  entered  it,  how  glad  they  would  be  to 
serve  the  Messiah,  their  king,  and  obey  his  commands. 
One  day  a  woman  said  to  him,  as  she  heard  him  teach- 
ing about  the  Kingdom,  "Blessed  are  they  that  shall 
eat  bread  in  the  Kingdom  of  God."  Quickly  he  turned 
to  her  and  said,  in  gentle  words  which  nevertheless  gave 
her  a  great  deal  to  think  over,  "Yes;  but  even  more 
blessed  are  those  who  hear  the  word  of  God  and  do  it!" 

The  parable. — One  time  Jesus  told  a  story  to  show 
how  God  would  reward  those  who  not  only  wished  to 


THE  TWO  HOUSES  135 

minister  to  the  King  Messiah  when  he  came,  but  also 
help  those  in  need  while  they  waited.  He  described  the 
coming  of  the  Messiah,  as  people  expected  it  to  be— in 
glory,  surrounded  with  all  the  angels  of  God,  sitting 
upon  his  throne  to  hold  the  last  judgment.  Before  him 
were  to  be  gathered  all  the  nations,  which  he  would 
separate  into  good  and  bad  as  a  shepherd  divides  his 
sheep  from  the  goats.  The  sheep  were  to  be  gathered 
on  his  right  hand,  and  the  goats  on  his  left. 

"Then  shall  the  King  say  unto  those  on  his  right 
hand,  'Come,  ye  blessed  of  my  Father,  inherit  the 
kingdom  prepared  for  you  from  the  foundation  of 
the  world.  For  I  was  hungry  and  you  gave  me  food ; 
I  was  thirsty  and  you  gave  me  drink;  I  was  a  stranger 
and  you  took  me  in;  naked  and  you  clothed  me; 
sick  and  you  visited  me;  I  was  in  prison  and  you 
came  unto  me.' 

"Then  shall  the  righteous  answer  him  and  say, 
'Lord,  when  did  we  see  you  himgry  and  feed  you? 
or  thirsty  and  give  you  a  drink?  and  when  did  we  see 
you  a  stranger  and  take  you  in?  or  naked  and  clothe 
you?  and  when  did  we  see  you  sick  or  in  prison  and 
came  to  you?' 

"And  the  King  shall  answer  them,  'Truly  I  say 
to  you,  Inasmuch  as  you  did  it  unto  one  of  these  my 
brethren,  even  the  least,  you  did  it  unto  me.' 

"Then  shall  he  say  also  to  those  on  the  left  hand, 
'Depart  from  me!  .  .  .  For  I  was  hungry  and  you 
gave  me  nothing  to  eat;  I  was  thirsty  and  you  gave 
me  no  drink;  I  was  a  stranger  and  you  turned  me 
away;  naked  and  you  did  not  clothe  me;  sick  and 
you  did  not  visit  me.' 

"Then  shall  they  also  answer,  saying,  'Lord,  when 
did  we  see  you  hungry  or  thirsty  or  a  stranger  or 
naked  or  sick  or  in  prison  and  did  not  minister  to 
you?' 


136        THE  LIFE  AND  TIMES  OF  JESUS 

"He  will  answer  them,  'Truly,  I  tell  you,  inasmuch 
as  you  did  it  not  unto  one  of  the  least  of  these  my 
brethren,  you  did  it  not  unto  me.' 

"And  these  shall  go  away  into  punishment;  but 
the  righteous  into  life  eternal." — Matthew  25:  34-46. 

The  real  test  of  righteousness,  which  will  be  the  test 
in  the  final  judgment,  is  not  merely  knowing,  but  know- 
ing and  doing.  To  know  the  Law  is  not  enough;  we 
must  keep  it.  To  know  that  we  ought  to  love  our 
neighbors  is  not  enough;  we  must  really  love  them.  To 
know  that  we  ought  to  be  unselfish,  and  share  our  good 
things  with  other  boys  and  girls  who  do  not  enjoy  our 
privileges — merely  to  know  this  amounts  to  nothing:  we 
must  also  do  it! 

STUDY  TOPICS 

1.  Tell  the  story  of  the  two  housebuilders.    What  does  it 

mean?    Memorize  Matthew  7:21  and  24-27. 

2.  Explain:  "By  their  fruits  ye  shall  know  them." 

3.  Look  up  James  i:  22-27.    What  is  the  difference  be- 

tween the  man  who  merely  admires  Jesus'  teaching, 
or  who  talks  all  the  time  about  religion,  and  the  one 
who  actually  does  the  will  of  God  ? 

4.  Look  up  Matthew  21:28-31.     Do  you  see  any  con- 

nection that  this  has  with  our  lesson? 

5.  Tell  the  story  of  the  Parable  of  the  Last  Judgment, 

given  in  this  chapter. 

6.  Read  Matthew  25 :  14-29.    What  does  the  story  found 

there  have  to  do  with  our  lesson  ? 

7.  Can  you  think  of  any  other  sayings  of  Jesus  which  we 

have  read  which  show  his  teaching  on  this  subject? 


CHAPTER  XX 
A  VISIT  TO  NAZARETH 

The  news  about  Jesus  which  spread  all  over  the 
country  had  reached  Nazareth  soon  after  his  teaching 
and  healing  in  the  synagogue  at  Capernaum.  Travelers 
may  have  brought  the  news,  or  people  from  Nazareth 
may  have  heard  it  when  they  went  down  to  Capernaum 
to  sell  a  load  of  fruit  or  a  skin  or  two  of  wine.  Nat- 
urally, they  wondered  if  Jesus  would  come  home  and 
preach  in  Nazareth  also. 

JESUS   REVISITS   HIS  OLD  HOME 

"His  fame  went  out  through  all  the  region  round 
about,"  says  Saint  Luke  (4:  14-15),  "and  he  taught  in 
their  synagogues,  being  honored  by  all."  And  yet  he  had 
never  been  back  to  Nazareth  since  the  day  when  he  left 
home  to  go  and  hear  John  the  prophet  and  to  be  bap- 
tized by  him!  As  he  taught  in  the  synagogues  of  the 
villages  and  cities  round  about,  he  must  have  pictured 
to  himself  the  congregation  in  the  synagogue  at  home, 
where  he  had  worshiped  for  almost  thirty  years,  where 
he  knew  everyone,  and  where  everyone  knew  and— he 
was  sure — cared  for  him. 

In  the  synagogue.— Accompanied  by  the  Twelve,  he 
made  his  way  up  to  Nazareth.  On  the  Sabbath  he  went 
to  the  synagogue,  as  his  custom  was,  and  stood  up  to 
read  the  lessons.  The  sexton  took  down  the  sacred 
scroll  from  the  "ark"  and  handed  it  to  him.  It  was  the 
Book  of  the  Prophet  Isaiah.  He  unrolled  the  book  and 
began  to  read: 

137 


138        THE  LIFE  AND  TIMES  OF  JESUS 

"The  Spirit  of  the  Lord  is  upon  me; 

He  has  anointed  me  to  preach  good  tidings  to 
the  poor, 
To  bind  up  the  brokenhearted. 
He  has  sent  me  to  proclaim  release  to  the  cap- 
tives, 
And  recovery  of  sight  to  the  blind; 

To  set  at  liberty  the  captives, 
And  proclaim  the  acceptable  year  of  the  Lord!" 

— Isaiah  6i :  1-2. 

The  Scripture  fulfilled. — Then  he  rolled  up  the 
book,  fastened  the  clasps  of  the  handles,  gave  it  back 
to  the  attendant,  and  sat  down.  The  rabbi  always  sat 
to  teach,  and  so  did  Jesus.  The  eyes  of  all  in  the  syna- 
gogue were  fixed  upon  him.  This  was  to  be  his  first 
sermon  in  the  home  synagogue.  Everyone  was  listen- 
ing intently  to  hear  every  word  he  said.  He  began  by 
saying,  "This  passage  of  Scripture  has  just  been  ful- 
filled— even  while  you  were  hearing  me  read  it.  The 
Day  of  the  Lord  is  really  here  at  last.  The  Spirit  of 
God  has  been  given  and  It  has  come  upon  me.  Just 
as  John  was  the  'Voice  in  the  Wilderness,'  described  by 
Isaiah,  so  I  am  the  one  upon  whom  the  Spirit  has  been 
sent,  likewise  described  by  the  ancient  prophet." 

What  his  hearers  thought.— They  had  been  pleased 
with  his  sermon  thus  far,  and  marveled  at  his  gracious 
words.  And  they  wondered,  "How  is  it  possible  for 
Jesus  to  teach  in  this  way?"  Never  had  they  heard  him 
speak  thus  before — nor  had  they  ever  heard  anyone 
else  speak  in  this  way. 

But  some  said  to  themselves,  "Whence  has  he  such 
wisdom?  Is  not  this  the  carpenter,  the  son  of  Joseph 
and  Mary?  We  know  him  and  his  whole  family.  His 
own  brothers   are   right   here — James   and   Joses   and 


A  VISIT  TO  NAZARETH  139 

Judas  and  Simon — and  his  sisters  too!  It  is  absurd  for 
him  to  claim  that  God  has  sent  him  to  fulfill  the  proph- 
ecy.   We  will  not  listen  to  him!" 

Jesus  is  interrupted. — So  they  interrupted  his  ser- 
mon and  would  not  allow  him  to  finish. 

But  Jesus  calmly  replied  to  them,  "Some  day  you  will 
come  to  me  with  the  words  of  the  proverb,  'Physician, 
heal  thyself;  you  will  beg  of  me,  'Whatever  we  have 
heard  done  at  Capernaum,  do  here  also  in  your  own 
home.'  But  no  prophet  is  honored  in  his  own  country 
or  by  his  own  family:  only  strangers  appreciate  his 
message. 

' '  Was  Elijah  honored  in  Israel?  No — there  were  many 
widows  in  Israel  in  his  days,  when  famine  lasted  for 
three  years  and  a  half;  but  the  prophet  could  help  no 
one  in  Israel.  He  had  to  go  to  Zarephath,  near  Sidon, 
outside  the  Holy  Land,  where  he  brought  God's  blessing 
upon  a  poor  Gentile. 

"It  was  just  as  true  in  the  days  of  Elisha.  There 
were  lepers  enough  in  Israel;  but  it  was  Naaman,  a 
Syrian,  who  came  to  him  for  help." 

He  is  cast  out  of  the  synagogue. — This  was  more 
than  the  congregation  could  stand!  It  was  bad  enough 
to  have  their  village  carpenter  claiming  to  have  a  mes- 
sage from  God  and  to  be  the  fulfiller  of  prophecy.  But 
to  hear  him  say  that  God  preferred  Gentiles  above  the 
cliildren  of  Israel— whether  or  not  it  had  been  true  in 
the  days  of  the  old  prophets — they  would  not  listen  to 
such  doctrine  now. 

Can  you  imagine  people  thus  hating  Jesus  and  de- 
spising his  teaching?  Can  you  realize  what  prejudice 
and  bigotry  and  meanness  mastered  the  congregation 
that  day  in  the  Nazareth  synagogue? 

They  were  all  "filled  with  wrath,"  and  led  him  out  to 


I40        THE  LIFE  AND  TIMES  OF  JESUS 

the  brow  of  the  hill  on  which  Nazareth  was  built  in  order 
to  throw  him  down  headlong.  The  very  hilltop  where 
he  had  played  as  a  bby  and  watched  the  caravans  in 
the  valley!  And  the  angry  men  about  him  had  once 
been  his  playfellows,  long  ago! 

Jesus  unafraid  — But  he  looked  them  straight  in  the 
eye  without  the  tremor  of  a  single  muscle.  His  very 
attitude  made  them  afraid  to  touch  him.  Without  a 
word,  he  passed  through  the  crowd  and  went  his  way. 

The  one  who  had  slept  in  the  boat  while  the  storm 
raged,  and  who  not  only  was  unafraid  himself,  but  could 
also  make  others  brave,  was  not  likely  to  quail  before 
his  one-time  neighbors  when  they  turned  against  him. 

THE  RESULTS   OF   HIS   VISIT 

In  Nazareth  "he  could  do  no  mighty  work,"  says  the 
Gospel  according  to  Mark,  "except  that  he  laid  his 
hands  upon  a  few  sick  persons  and  healed  them.  And 
he  marveled  at  their  unbelief"  (Mark  6:  5-6). 

The  suspicion  of  his  neighbors. — The  people  of 
Nazareth,  as  a  whole,  had  turned  against  him.  They 
could  not  believe  that  Jesus,  whom  they  had  known 
from  boyhood,  had  a  mission  from  God.  It  is  often  so: 
the  great  man — poet,  preacher,  inventor,  statesman — is 
not  appreciated  by  his  own  neighbors,  who  ought  to 
know  him  best. 

Their  disbelief  soon  passed  into  suspicion,  and  then 
into  gossip  and  slander.  They  said,  "He  cannot  be  in 
his  right  mind.  He  has  gone  insane  over  this  idea  of 
the  Kingdom  of  God  which  John  preached.  For  he  is 
no  rabbi  or  prophet,  but  only  a  carpenter." 

The  libel,  "By  Beelzebub."— The  Pharisees,  who 
were  now  doing  all  they  could  to  ruin  Jesus,  welcomed 
the  story  of  his  rejection  in  Nazareth.     The  slander 


A  VISIT  TO  NAZARETH  141 

that  he  was  insane  was  soon  repeated  by  the  Pharisees, 
and  of  course  they  added  to  it. 

It  was  impossible  to  deny  that  Jesus  heaied  people. 
Everyone  knew  that.  But  the  scribes  and  Pharisees 
asked,  ''Where  did  he  get  his  power  to  heal?  He  says, 
'The  Spirit  of  God  is  upon  me.'  But  don't  you  believe 
him!  His  power  comes  from  the  strongest  of  all  the 
evil  spirits,  Beelzebub."  Thus  they  did  not  deny  his 
"mighty  works,"  but  they  explained  them  as  done  by 
power  received  from  the  devil. 

Jesus'  answer. — Jesus'  answer  was  simple  and  rea- 
sonable. If  anyone  was  fair  and  honest  in  mind  and 
not  afraid  to  disagree  with  the  scribes  and  Pharisees 
he  could  not  help  being  persuaded. 

"Do  the  scribes  say  that  I  cast  out  demons  by  the 
power  of  a  demon?  How  can  Satan  cast  out  Satan? 
If  Satan— or  Beelzebub,  or  whatever  name  they  give 
the  prince  of  darkness— is  casting  out  Satan,  how 
long  will  his  kingdom  last?  If  he  has  akeady  turned 
against  himself,  it  is  clear  that  the  kingdom  of  evil 

is  at  an  end. 

"They  say  that  I  cast  out  demons  by  the  power  of 
a  demon.  By  whose  power,  then,  do  their  own 
disciples  cast  out  evil  spirits?  Therefore,  they  shall 
be  their  judges. 

"But  if  my  statement  is  true,  and  instead  of  heal- 
ing the  sick  by  the  power  of  Satan,  I  really  am  doing 
it  by  the  power  of  God,  then  surely  this  proves  that 
the  Kingdom  of  God  is  coming  to  pass.  For  Satan's 
kingdom  is  being  destroyed.  And  when  Satan's 
reign  is  ended,  God's  reign  will  be  complete. 

"They  say  that  I  cast  out  demons  by  the  power  of 
a  demon.  Do  they  mean  that  to  heal  the  sick,  cure 
the  insane,  convert  the  sinful,  is  working  for  Satan 
and  not  for  God?    That  is  blasphemy!    It  is  not  a 


142        THE  LIFE  AND  TIMES  OF  JESUS 

slander  against  me :  it  is  a  libel  against  the  goodness 
and  mercy  of  God!" — Matthew  12:  24-32. 

The  scribes  never  replied  to  that  argument. 

Jesus'  family  becomes  alarmed. — A  terrible  con- 
flict seemed  at  hand.  The  people  of  Galilee,  outside 
Nazareth,  welcomed  Jesus  and  loved  him.  Great  crowds 
gathered  about  him  wherever  he  went.  But  the  au- 
thorities, the  scribes  and  Pharisees,  were  determined  to 
put  him  out  of  the  way.  Either  they  must  get  him 
out  of  the  way,  they  felt,  before  his  influence  grew  any 
greater,  or  he  would  succeed,  and  that  would  be  the 
end  of  their  hold  upon  the  people. 

His  own  family  became  alarmed  over  him.  It  might 
be  true  that  he  was  "beside  himself."  The  strain  of 
overwork,  the  constant  teaching  and  heaUng,  the  de- 
mands of  the  crowd  about  him,  may  have  worn  him 
out.  The  enthusiasm  of  the  movement  begun  by  John, 
the  ardent  preparation  for  the  coming  of  God's  King- 
dom, may  have  carried  him  too  far.  And  they  had 
seen  the  danger  he  was  in,  the  Sabbath  he  spent  at 
Nazareth. 

Thus  they  thought.  They  feared  for  his  safety.  So 
his  mother  and  brothers  went  down  to  Capernaum, 
whither  he  had  returned  after  leaving  Nazareth,  in 
order  to  bring  him  home.  Here  they  found  him,  in  a 
house,  surrounded  as  usual  by  a  multitude  of  listeners. 
So  they  sent  in  word  that  they  had  come  for  him. 

Someone  said  to  him,  "Behold,  your  mother  and  your 
brothers  are  outside,  waiting  to  see  you."  But  he 
merely  replied,  "  'My  mother  and  my  brothers?' — Be- 
hold, these  are  my  mother  and  my  brothers,  right  here 
before  me.  For  whoever  shall  do  the  will  of  God,  the 
same  is  my  brother  and  sister  and  mother!" 

Even  his  own  family  had  failed  to  understand  him! 


A  VISIT  TO  NAZARETH  143 

Even  their  kindness  and  good  intentions  were  mistaken, 
for  they  did  not  believe  his  message! 

STUDY  TOPICS 

1.  Review  Chapter  3  for  the  location  and  description  of 

Nazareth. 

2.  Who  were  Elijah  and  Elishar     Who  was  Naaman' 

See  I  Kings  17  and  2  Kings  5. 

3.  Describe  Jesus'  visit  to  Nazareth,  and  tell  its  results. 

Read  Luke  4:  16-31. 

4.  What  was  Jesus'  answer  to  the  charge  that  he  healed 

the  sick  by  the  power  of  Beelzebub? 

5.  Why  was  Jesus'  family  alarmed  about  him? 

6.  What  did  Jesus  mean  when  he  said  that  his  true  fam- 

ily was  made  up  of  those  who  hear  the  word  of  God 
and  do  His  will  ? 

7.  Memorize  Isaiah  61:  1-2. 

8.  Tell  how  Jesus'  work  of  teaching  and  healing  was  a 

fulfillment  of  the  prophecy- 


CHAPTER  XXI 
A  MESSAGE  FROM  JOHN 

After  John  was  cast  into  prison  by  Herod  Antipas 
(see  Chapter  8),  his  disciples  carried  on  his  work  of 
teaching  and  baptizing.  The  tetrarch  was  ''keeping 
John  safe"  in  prison,  so  he  said,  from  the  schemes  of  the 
wicked  Herodias.  Accordingly,  the  prophet's  disciples 
were  permitted  to  visit  him  from  time  to  time,  and 
bring  him  reports  of  their  own  work  and  news  of  the 
outside  world.  Of  course,  they  told  him  about  Jesus, 
the  wonderful  accounts  of  his  teaching  which  had  come 
to  them,  and  of  his  healing  the  sick.  Everyone  said, 
"A  great  prophet  has  risen  up  among  us:  God  has  vis- 
ited His  people  at  last!" 

John's  messengers 

John  had  preached,  as  you  remember,  that  "one 
mightier"  than  himself  was  soon  to  come  and  hold  the 
judgment  and  set  up  God's  Kingdom  on  earth.  As  he 
lay  in  prison,  now,  pondering  what  his  disciples  told 
him  from  time  to  time  about  Jesus,  he  began  to  wonder 
if  this  could  be  the  one  whose  coming  he  had  been  sent 
to  proclaim.  True,  this  was  not  the  way  the  Messiah 
was  expected  to  come  by  the  people  generally.  Nor 
had  he  himself  looked  for  such  a  Messiah.  For  Jesus 
was  not  a  judge,  but  a  teacher.  He  did  not  seem  much 
like  a  man  separating  trodden  wheat  from  chaff,  shovel 
in  hand,  tossing  the  threshed  grain  into  the  wind — as 
John  had  described  the  Messiah.  Instead,  he  was  more 
like  a  sower,  scattering  seed,  waiting  for  it  to  take  root 
in  the  hearts  of  men. 

144 


A  MESSAGE  FROM  JOHN  145 

Still,  Jesus  might  be  the  Messiah,  after  all;  or  at  least 
another  prophet,  like  himself;  or  perhaps  he  was  the 
"Messenger  of  the  Covenant,"  whom  God  was  to  send 
before  the  "great  and  terrible  Day"  of  His  own  coming. 

"Are  you  the  Messiah?" — So  he  chose  out  two  of 
his  trusted  disciples,  and  sent  them  to  Jesus  with  the 
simple  message,  "Art  thou  he  that  cometh,  or  shall  we 
look  for  another?" 

When  the  men  came  they  found  Jesus,  as  usual, 
surrounded  by  the  people.  He  was  teaching  and  heal- 
ing; for  the  sick  and  afflicted  came  or  were  brought  to 
him  in  great  numbers  from  every  quarter.  While  the 
disciples  of  John  stood  there,  they  saw  with  their  own 
eyes  what  was  taking  place.  The  sick  were  actually 
made  well,  the  helpless  made  strong. 

Jesus*  reply. — Jesus'  reply  was  as  simple  as  John's 
question. 

"Go  your  way,  and  tell  John  what  you  yourselves 
have  seen  and  heard.  The  blind  receive  their  sight, 
the  lame  walk,  the  lepers  are  cleansed,  the  deaf 
hear,  the  dead  are  raised  up,  and  the  poor  have  good 
news  preached  to  them." — Luke  7:  22. 

They  could  see  with  their  own  eyes  that  the  prophecy 
of  Isaiah,  which  Jesus  had  read  in  the  synagogue  at 
Nazareth,  was  being  fulfilled.  This  was  the  proof  that 
John  needed.  But  Jesus  would  not  say  yet  whether  he 
was  the  Christ  or  not.  This  was  not  for  public  informa- 
tion. To  tell  it  broadcast  would  mean  the  end  of  his 
ministry  at  once.  For  he  was  not  the  kind  of  a  Messiah 
that  everyone  expected. 

But  let  John  not  give  up  hope!  Others  might  mis- 
understand and  disbelieve,  but  let  John  take  courage. 
So  Jesus  added  this  tender  message  to  the  imprisoned 


146        THE  LIFE  AND  TIMES  OF  JESUS 

prophet,  "Tell  him,  'Blessed  is  he  who  finds  no  occasion 
for  stumbling  in  me.'  " 

And  to  his  own  disciples  Jesus  said,  "Blessed  are  the 
eyes  that  sec  the  things  that  you  see;  and  the  ears  that 
hear  what  you  hear!  For  I  tell  you  that  many  prophets 
and  kings  have  desired  to  see  the  things  that  you  see 
and  have  not  seen  them,  and  to  hear  the  things  that 
you  hear,  and  have  not  heard  them." 

JESUS'   WORDS   ABOUT   JOHN 

What  the  prophet  said  when  his  disciples  returned 
with  Jesus'  message  v*^e  do  not  know.  No  doubt  he  was 
cheered  in  his  lonely  cell  by  the  news  of  Jesus'  mighty 
works,  and  by  Jesus'  assurance  that  they  were  really 
signs  of  the  coming  Kingdom. 

Who  is  John? — When  the  messengers  had  departed 
Jesus  began  to  say  to  the  multitudes, 

"What  is  it  that  you  went  out  into  the  wilderness  to 
see?  There  are  acres  of  wild  reeds  out  there,  shak- 
ing in  the  wind — but  surely  you  did  not  go  out  to 
look  at  them!  Or  did  you  go  out  to  look  at  some 
man  clothed  in  soft  raiment?  Hardly! — such  sights 
are  to  be  seen  nearer  home,  in  the  courts  of  kings, 
where  they  wear  gorgeous  apparel  and  live  deli- 
cately every  day. 

"What  really  did  you  go  out  to  see?  A  prophet? — 
Yes,  and  I  tell  you,  much  more  than  a  prophet !  For 
this  is  none  other  than  the  one  of  whom  it  is  written, 

"  'Behold,  I  send  My  messenger  before  thy  face, 
Who  shall  prepare  the  way  before  thee,' 
— ^he  has  come  as  the  Messiah's  herald. 

"He  was  no  quivering  reed — did  anyone  ever  see 
him  tremble  before  Herod  and  his  wicked  wife?  He 
was  no  luxury-loving  courtier — ^his  clothing  was 
rough  and  his  food  the  plainest.    Who  was  he  then? 


A  MESSAGE  FROM  JOHN  147 

— none  other  than  God's  own  messenger;  he  was 
the  'Messenger  of  the  Covenant.' 

"He  was  Elijah  returned  to  earth,  as  the  Book  of 
Malachi  says.  He  was  sent  'to  turn  the  hearts  of 
the  fathers  to  the  children,  and  the  hearts  of  the 
children  to  their  fathers,'  the  great  Converter,  whom 
the  rabbis  say  must  come  just  before  the  Messiah 
arrives." — Luke  7:  24-27. 

A  prophet's  fate 

Even  though  John  was  in  prison,  he  was  still  God's 
Messenger.  For  that  was  the  way  men  had  always 
treated  God's  messengers —by  persecution,  imprison- 
ment, stoning,  death.  It  even  began  to  appear  that 
some  such  end  might  be  awaiting  Jesus  himself. 

Herod  Antipas  had  tried  to  excuse  himself  for  im- 
prisoning John  when  he  said  that  he  did  it  to  "keep 
him  safe."  But  the  excuse  was  false,  and  the  day  soon 
arrived  when  this  became  evident. 

Herod's  birthday  feast. — The  tetrarch's  birthday 
came  around,  and  a  great  banquet  was  given  in  his 
honor  at  Tiberias.  The  officers  of  the  government  and 
of  the  army,  friends  and  acquaintances  from  other  parts 
of  the  province,  rich  and  prominent  Gentiles  doing 
business  in  Galilee — all  these  were  invited. 

Part  of  the  entertainment  was  a  dance  performed  by 
the  beautiful  daughter  of  Herodias,  Salome — who  was 
Herod's  niece  (and  now  step-daughter  by  his  unlawful 
marriage  with  Herodias).  Herod  was  greatly  pleased 
with  her  dancing,  and  so  were  his  guests.  Half-drunk, 
and  not  realizing  what  he  said,  he  promised  with  an 
oath  to  give  the  girl  anything  she  asked,  up  to  the  half 
of  his  kingdom.  It  was  the  foolish  promise  of  a  brutal 
and  powerful  man  with  just  enough  conscience  to  make 
him  keep  it. 


148        THE  LIFE  AND  TIMES  OF  JESUS 

Salome  hardly  knew  what  to  say  to  the  king,  and  so 
she  asked  her  mother.  "What  shall  I  ask  him  to  give 
me?"  she  said.  The  wicked  Herodias  saw  that  at  last 
the  opportunity  had  come  for  her  to  take  vengeance  on 
John.  She  replied,  "Ask  him  to  give  you  the  head  of 
John  the  Baptist!" 

John  beheaded. — It  was  too  late  for  Herod  to  take 
back  his  promise.  Even  though  he  was  secretly  sorry, 
he  wanted  to  be  a  "good  fellow"  and  a  "sport"  in  the 
eyes  of  his  guests.  So  he  sent  a  soldier  to  comply  with 
Salome's  request.  John  was  beheaded  in  prison.  "And 
when  his  disciples  heard  thereof,  they  came  and  took 
up  his  body  and  laid  it  in  a  tomb." 

Such  was  the  end  of  the  greatest  man  of  his  genera- 
tion next  to  Jesus:  "a  prophet  and  more  than  a  prophet," 
God's  own  messenger  to  His  people  and  the  herald  of 
the  coming  of  the  Messiah.  He  had  been  "Elijah  come 
again,"  as  the  angel  had  said  before  he  was  born  (Luke 

1:15-17)- 

He  was  slain  to  satisfy  the  whim  of  a  child  not  old 
enough  to  know  what  she  wanted;  to  satisfy  the  lust 
for  vengeance  of  a  wicked,  intriguing  woman;  to  enable 
a  brutal,  half-drunken  tyrant  to  keep  his  silly  word. 

In  such  a  world  as  that  do  you  wonder  that  Jesus 
foresaw  what  might  be  his  own  fate?  But  no  more  than 
John  had  been  was  Jesus  one  who  put  his  own  safety 
ahead  of  the  work  for  God  which  he  had  undertaken. 
That  came  first,  whatever  Herod  Antipas  or  the  scribes 
and  Pharisees  might  try  to  do  to  him. 

STUDY  TOPICS 

1.  What  did  John's  disciples  do  after  the  prophet  was 

cast  into  prison? 

2.  Tell  why  John  was  imprisoned. 


A  MESSAGE  FROM  JOHN  149 

What  was  Jesus'  answer  to  the  messengers  from  John  ? 

Explain  its  significance. 
What  was  meant  by  the  identification  of  John  with 

Elijah?    What  was  Elijah  expected  to  do  when  he 

returned  to  earth,  according  to  the  hopes  of  the 

people?     Look  up  Malachi  4:  5-6. 
Tell  the  story  of  Herod's  birthday  dinner  and  the 

death  of  John. 


CHAPTER  XXII 
TEACHING  BY  PARABLES 

About  the  oldest  things  in  the  world  are  stories. 
Long  before  the  pyramids  of  Egypt  were  built  people 
told  stories — and  some  of  them  are  now  found  in  the 
Bible.  Long  before  there  were  any  Greek  poets,  people 
told  the  stories  which  now  are  found  in  Homer.  And 
the  stories  of  ^Esop — "iEsop's  Fables" — are  among  the 
very  oldest  stories  in  the  whole  world :  they  were  told  in 
Greece  and  Egypt  and  Persia  and  India  long  before 
men  began  to  write  books. 

The  stories  of  ^Esop  are  called  "fables"  because  they 
were  made  up  for  the  purpose  of  teaching  certain  les- 
sons. The  "parables"  of  Jesus  are  somewhat  like 
"fables,"  only  they  are  more  beautiful  and  more  Uke 
what  really  happens.  Jesus  did  not,  like  ^Esop,  imagine 
that  trees  and  animals  can  talk.  The  stories  he  told 
were  about  things  which  happen  around  us  every  day 
of  our  lives. 

Jesus  constantly  used  parables  in  his  teaching.  It 
was  hard  for  his  hearers  to  understand  unless  he  used 
such  stories.  And  thus  also  they  remembered  what  he 
taught  them  much  better  than  when  he  preached  from 
the  Law.  Who  could  forget  the  ending  of  the  Sermon 
on  the  Mount,  Jesus'  story  of  the  two  houses? 

A  DAY   OF   PARABLES 

After  Jesus'  death  someone,  perhaps  it  was  Peter, 
remembered  a  day  when  Jesus  sat  by  the  lakeside  and 
taught  the  people  "many  things  in  parables."    Some  of 

150 


TEACHING  BY  PARABLES  151 

those  parables  have  been  preserved  in  the  gospels  (Mark 
4,  Matthew  13,  Luke  8),  and  wc  are  going  to  study  them 
in  this  chapter. 

Beside  the  sea. — We  can  imagine  what  that  day  was 
like.  It  was  still  summer.  People  were  following  Jesus 
in  crowds,  having  come  long  distances  from  their  homes 
to  see  and  hear  him.  So  great  was  the  crowd  on  this 
particular  day  that  he  could  not  be  heard  by  all  as  they 
gathered  about  him  on  the  shore.  So  he  entered  a  boat 
and  sat  out  on  the  water  a  few  feet  from  land. 

The  Parable  of  the  Sower. — He  was  teaching  them, 
as  usual,  about  the  Kingdom  of  God,  about  the  right 
way  in  which  to  prepare  for  its  coming,  about  the  kind 
of  persons  God  wants  for  its  members,  about  the  way 
in  which  it  will  come.    And  he  told  them  this  story: 

"Behold,  the  sower  went  forth  to  sow;  and  it 
came  to  pass,  as  he  sowed,  some  of  the  seed  fell  by 
the  wayside,  and  birds  came  £ind  devoured  it.  Some 
fell  on  stony  ground,  where  it  had  but  little  earth; 
and  at  once  it  sprang  up,  because  it  had  no  depth  of 
earth.  But  when  the  sun  arose,  it  was  scorched; 
and  because  it  had  no  root,  it  withered  away.  Still 
other  seed  fell  among  thorns;  and  the  thorns  grew 
up  and  choked  it,  and  it  yielded  no  grain.  Only  a 
part  of  the  seed  fell  upon  good  ground,  where  it 
took  root  and  grew  up  and  produced  thirty,  sixty, 
and  even  a  hundred-fold. 

"He  that  has  ears  to  hear,  let  him  hear."— Mark 

4:3-9- 

What  did  Jesus  mean  by  this  parable?  What  do  the 
different  kinds  of  soil  represent? 

Any  day  in  spring  you  could  see  the  sowers  going 
about  over  the  fields  scattering  their  millet  and  barley 
seed.     But  Jesus  was  not   talking   about   such    seed. 


152        THE  LIFE  AND  TIMES  OF  JESUS 

"He  that  has  ears  to  hear,  let  him  hear!"  One  must 
try  to  understand  what  he  meant.  The  disciples  were 
not  sure  that  they  understood,  and  so  they  asked  what 
the  parable  signified. 

The  different  kinds  of  soil,  Jesus  told  them,  represent 
different  kinds  of  people.  They  all  hear  the  message  of 
Jesus,  but  some  respond  and  some  do  not.  Some  hear, 
and  pay  no  attention — like  the  soil  in  which  the  seed 
does  not  even  take  root.  Others  hear,  and  "endure  for 
a  little  while";  but  as  soon  as  trouble  or  opposition 
arises  they  give  up — like  the  soil  which  the  hot  sun 
dries  up  into  clods,  withering  the  tiny  roots  of  the 
plants.  Still  others,  who  are  like  the  thorny,  weed- 
covered  soil,  hear  the  message  about  God  and  His 
Kingdom;  but  they  are  proud  and  self-satisfied  and 
indifferent;  the  seed  is  choked  and  dies.  Only  a  few 
bear  fruit — ^but  these  bear  thirty,  sixty,  a  hundredfold! 
These  are  the  persons  who  "hear  the  word  of  God  and 
do  it";  they  are  the  ones  whom  Jesus  described  in  the 
Beatitudes,  in  the  story  of  the  two  houses  (the  wise 
house-builder),  and  whom  he  called  his  true  family, 
"brothers  and  sisters  and  mother." 

The  Parable  of  the  Mustard  Seed. — But  how 
great  is  the  harvest  even  from  the  few  seeds  which  fall 
on  good  soil,  and  sprout  and  spring  up  and  produce 
the  crop!  The  beginning  is  small,  the  result  is  great. 
So  is  the  Kingdom  of  God.  Only  a  few  persons  really 
heed  the  message.  But  God  can  always  use  the  few. 
He  does  not  "despise  the  day  of  small  things." 

No  one,  in  those  days,  expected  the  Kingdom  of  God 
to  start  with  a  few — they  expected  it  to  come  suddenly, 
like  lightning  perhaps;  or  with  an  army  of  soldiers,  and 
a  great  war;  with  a  king  in  Jerusalem,  and  angels  fight- 
ing for  them  in  the  skies.    But  Jesus  knew  that  God's 


TEACHING  BY  PARABLES  153 

Kingdom  was  not  to  come  in  that  way.  God  could  use 
even  the  small  beginnings,  the  few  persons  among 
Jesus'  crowd  of  followers  who  were  really  true  disciples. 

"The  Kingdom  of  God  is  like  a  mustard  seed; 
when  it  is  sown,  it  is  the  smallest  of  all  seeds.  But 
when  the  mustard  plant  grows  up  it  is  larger  than 
any  other  shrub.  It  puts  forth  great  branches  and 
becomes  a  tree,  so  that  the  birds  of  heaven  come 
and  lodge  in  it." — Mark  4:  31-32. 

The  Seed  Growing  Secretly. — How  the  seed  grows, 
no  one  can  tell.  It  is  buried  in  the  earth,  warmed  by 
the  sun,  moistened  by  the  rain.  After  a  while  the  tiny 
roots  reach  down  deeper  into  the  soil,  and  the  stalk 
pushes  up  toward  the  air  and  the  sunlight.  Day  by  day 
it  grows,  until  at  last  it  ripens,  and  the  harvest  comes. 
But  no  one  can  tell  how  or  why  it  has  grown ! 

That  also  is  like  the  Kingdom  of  God.  Its  beginnings 
are  small,  like  a  tiny  seed.  No  one  can  force  it  to  grow, 
no  one  can  keep  it  from  growing.  Just  as  God  makes 
the  grass  and  the  grain  to  grow,  said  Jesus,  so  He  is 
bringing  His  Kingdom  to  pass.  You  cannot  see  it  com- 
ing, for  it  comes  very  slowly,  like  the  grain  growing  in 
the  fields;  but  nothing  can  hinder  its  coming — for  it  is 
God  Himself  who  is  bringing  it  to  pass. 

"First  the  blade,  then  the  ear,  then  the  full  grain 
in  the  ear:  at  last  comes  the  harvest!" — Mark  4: 
28-29. 

Other  parables. — Then  he  told  other  parables  to 
show  how  men  ought  to  welcome  the  message  of  the 
Kingdom  of  God,  how  they  ought  to  make  every  sacri- 
fice which  might  be  necessary  for  them  to  enter  it. 

"It  is  like  a  man  finding  treasure  biuied  in  a  field. 
When  he  finds  it,  he  puts  it  back,  and  then  goes  and 


154        THE  LIFE  AND  TIMES  OF  JESUS 

sells  all  that  he  has  and  buys  the  field.  For  the 
treasure,  which  will  then  be  his,  is  worth  many 
times  the  price  he  pays  for  the  field. 

"Or  it  is  like  a  merchant  seeking  goodly  pearls. 
When  he  finds  one  pearl  of  great  price,  he  goes  and 
sells  all  that  he  has,  and  buys  it." — Matthew  13: 
44-46. 

Preparation  for  the  Kingdom  of  God. — That  is 
how  men  ought  to  prepare  for  the  Kingdom  of  God. 
When  they  hear  about  it  they  ought  to  try  by  every 
means  in  their  power  to  enter  it,  to  get  possession  of  it. 
Some  persons  may  have  to  sell  their  goods  and  give  to 
the  poor;  some  may  have  to  restore  what  they  have 
wrongfully  taken  away  from  others;  some  may  have  to 
confess  their  sins,  and  ask  forgiveness;  some  may  have 
to  begin  all  over  again,  and  live  pure,  upright,  conscien- 
tious lives  before  God  and  their  neighbors. 

But  whatever  the  price,  it  is  not  too  much  to  pay  for 
the  privilege  of  entering  God's  Kingdom  and  becoming 
one  of  His  children.  For  the  Kingdom  of  God  is  worth 
more  than  everything  else  in  the  world. 

"What  does  it  profit  a  man?" — Jesus  asked  the 
question  one  time,  "What  does  it  profit  a  man  to  gain 
the  whole  world,  and  then  lose  his  life?" 

That  is  just  what  people  sometimes  do.  They  sacri- 
fice their  conscience  for  some  pleasure — as  when  a  boy 
makes  a  false  excuse  in  order  to  see  a  ball  game,  or 
helps  himself  to  money  or  other  things  which  do  not 
belong  to  him.  For  the  sake  of  a  little  happiness  right 
now  they  make  themselves  untrustworthy  for  years  to 
come. 

Obedience  and  honesty  may  seem  hard  at  the  time, 
but  a  clear  conscience  is  worth  everything.  God  wants 
people  who  can  be  trusted  as  members  of  His  Kingdom. 


TEACHING  BY  PARABLES  155 

A  clear  conscience  is  one  test  of  the  citizen  of  God's 
Kingdom. 

STUDY  TOPICS 

1.  What  is  the  difference  between  a  parable  and  a  fable? 

Show  the  difference  between  the  fables  of  i^sop 
and  the  parables  of  Jesus. 

2.  Why  did  Jesus  use  parables  in  his  teaching? 

3 .  Tell  the  story  of  the  Parable  of  the  Sower,  and  explain 

it. 

4.  Give  the  Parable  of  the  Mustard  Seed  in  your  own 

words,  and  explain  it. 

5.  Tell  what  Jesus  said  men  must  do  to  enter  the  King- 

dom of  God. 

6.  What  does  it  mean  to  have  a  clear  conscience?    What 

is  conscience? 


CHAPTER  XXIII 
THE  DISCIPLES'  FAITH  IN  JESUS 

The  crime  of  Herod  the  tetrarch  in  beheading  John 
caused  mourning  throughout  the  nation.  Some  of  those 
who  had  received  him  as  a  prophet  and  accepted  his 
message  and  his  baptism  began  to  wonder  if  the  Messiah 
was  really  coming  after  all.  His  disciples  now  turned  to 
Jesus.  He  assured  them  that  John  indeed  was  the 
promised  Messenger,  "Elijah  who  was  to  come,"  even 
though  men  "had  done  unto  him  as  they  would." 
Prophets  had  always  been  persecuted  and  many  of 
them  put  to  death. 

THE  PHARISEES'   THREAT 

The  Pharisees  did  not  mourn  John's  death.  Instead, 
they  saw  that  his  fate  could  be  used  to  hinder  the  work 
of  Jesus.  They  could  make  it  appear  that  John  had 
been  mistaken  about  the  coming  of  the  Messiah,  and 
that  Jesus  was  therefore  likewise  mistaken.  And  more- 
over, they  could  tell  him  that  Herod  would  put  him  to 
death  in  the  same  v/ay  unless  he  ceased  preaching  and 
healing. 

"Get  thee  hence!" — They  succeeded  in  interesting 
some  of  the  courtiers  of  Herod  Antipas  in  their  scheme. 
Herod  liimself  was  afraid  of  Jesus,  and  his  conscience 
troubled  him  somewhat  over  his  crime  against  John. 
When  they  told  him  about  Jesus  and  his  wonderful 
works  he  became  nervous  and  said,  "This  must  be 
John  the  Baptist,  risen  from  the  dead:  therefore  these 
powers  work  in  him."     For  he  supposed  that  only  a 

156 


THE  DISCIPLES'  FAITH  IN  JESUS        157 

person  risen  from  the  grave  could  do  such  great  works 
as  Jesus  was  doing. 

But  his  courtiers,  and  the  scribes  and  Pharisees,  were 
not  superstitious  (so  at  least  they  themselves  thought)  : 
they  hated  Jesus,  and  this  was  their  opportunity  to 
put  him  out  of  the  way.  So  they  sent  him  word, 
"Get  out  of  Galilee  at  once!  Herod  is  seeking  to  kill 
you!" 

Jesus'  answer. — Jesus  was  not  alarmed.  He  knew 
that  his  Father  had  given  him  work  to  do;  and  until  it 
was  done  Herod  could  do  him  no  harm.  So  he  replied, 
"Go,  tell  that  fox,  Behold,  I  cast  out  demons  and  per- 
fonn  cures  to-day  and  to-morrow — and  the  third  day 
(that  is,  in  a  short  time)  I  shall  complete  my  work." 
He  would  not  give  up  till  he  had  finished.  When  that 
should  be  God  would  make  clear  to  him. 

This  was  a  bold  answer  to  send  a  king — especially  a 
petty  king.  For  Herod  was  not  really  a  king,  but  only 
a  tetrarch,  or  governor,  under  the  oversight  of  the 
Roman  procurator.  But  the  less  his  real  power,  the 
greater  was  Herod's  pride  and  his  jealousy  of  what  he 
thought  was  his  lawful  authority. 

Jesus  withdraws  for  a  time. — Nevertheless,  Jesus 
soon  withdrew  from  southern  or  lower  Galilee.  He  was 
not  afraid  of  Herod,  as  his  answer  shows.  But  the 
time  had  not  yet  come  to  declare  himself  as  the  Mes- 
siah. To  do  so  before  the  proper  time  arrived  would 
be  fatal  to  the  success  of  his  work  among  the  people. 
From  the  day  of  his  baptism  he  had  been  following  the 
guidance  of  his  Father.  When  the  time  should  come 
for  him  to  make  a  public  statement  of  his  Messiahship, 
God  would  bring  it  about. 

What  faith,  what  patience,  what  real  obedience  this 
required  in  Jesus! 


158        THE  LIFE  AND  TIMES  OF  JESUS 

NEAR   C.ESAREA   PHILIPPI 

Jesus  now  went  up  into  the  mountain  foothills  of 
northern  Galilee.  Here  there  were  fewer  towns  than  in 
the  south  and  around  the  lake.  There  were  fewer  Jews 
and  more  Gentiles  among  the  people — Greeks  and 
Syrians,  mostly.  Heathen  shrines  and  temples  took  the 
place  of  synagogues. 

Across  the  border. — He  crossed  the  border  into  the 
district  around  Caesarea  Philippi.  This  city,  called 
"Philip's  Csesarea,"  was  so  named  to  distinguish  it 
from  the  larger  city  of  Cassarea  on  the  Mediterranean 
coast,  south  of  Mount  Carmel.  It  was  a  new  city, 
built  by  PhiHp  in  honor  of  Augustus  Caesar,  just  as 
his  brother  Antipas  had  built  a  city  on  the  Lake  of 
Galilee  and  named  it  Tiberias  in  honor  of  the  Emperor 
Tiberius. 

But  Jesus  and  his  disciples  did  not  go  into  Caesarea. 
They  remained  in  the  Httle  villages  nearby.  Even  here 
people  had  heard  of  Jesus  and  welcomed  him.  But  he 
did  not  intend  to  begin  a  new  ministry  here  among  the 
Gentiles.  Instead  he  planned  to  spend  most  of  his  time 
with  his  disciples  during  the  coming  months  of  winter, 
teaching  them  privately  and  preparing  to  return.  For 
he  meant  to  return  after  a  while — perhaps  by  spring — 
to  Galilee;  and  then  to  go  up  to  Jerusalem  for  the  Feast 
of  the  Passover. 

"Who  do  men  say  that  I  am?"— One  day,  as  they 
were  walking  along  the  road,  Jesus  turned  to  his  dis- 
ciples and  asked,  "Who  do  the  multitudes  say  that  I 
am?" 

They  replied,  "Some  say  you  are  John  the  Baptist, 
risen  from  the  dead;  some  say  you  are  Elijah — you,  and 
not  John,  since  John  has  been  put  to  death;  others  say 


THE  DISCIPLES'  FAITH  IN  JESUS        159 

that  you  are  one  of  the  old  prophets  come  back  to 
earth." 

"But  who  do  you  say  that  I  am?"  he  asked. 
Peter  answered  at  once  and  said,  "You  are  the  Mes- 
siah!" 

This  was  the  tirst  time  that  anyone  had  said  to  Jesus 
that  he  was  the  Messiah — since  the  day  of  his  baptism, 
when  he  had  heard  the  Voice  from  heaven.  And  al- 
though Peter  meant  that  Jesus,  as  Messiah  ("Christ"), 
was  to  become  a  king  and  reign  in  Jerusalem  over  the 
Jewish  nation,  still  Jesus  recognized  his  faith.  "Blessed 
art  thou,"  he  said,  "Simon,  son  of  Jona;  for  flesh  and 
blood  has  not  revealed  this  to  you,  but  my  Father  who 
is  in  heaven." 

The  divine  revelation. — At  last  the  hour  had  come 
for  which  he  had  been  waiting  since  his  baptism  and 
temptation.  He  had  refused  Satan's  suggestion  to  de- 
clare himself  to  be  the  Messiah.  His  work  was  to  pre- 
pare men  for  the  Kingdom;  and  he  had  deterrriined  to 
wait,  obediently  and  patiently,  for  his  Father  to  make 
known  to  the  world  who  he  himself  really  was.  And 
now  God  had  revealed  it  to  Peter.  Jesus  saw  that  the 
time  was  at  hand  when  he  should  step  forth  pubHcly 
as  the  One  sent  by  God  for  the  salvation  of  His  people. 

JESUS   THE  MESSIAH 

Perhaps  the  disciples  had  thought  that  Jesus  was  the 
Messiah,  even  before  Peter  confessed  his  faith.  But 
they  had  not  dared  to  say  so.  Peter  was  the  first  to 
express  this  belief.  It  took  real  faith  to  make  such  a 
confession.  For  at  that  very  time  Jesus  was  an  exile 
outside  the  Holy  Land,  in  a  region  of  Gentiles  and 
heathen — no  one  had  ever  yet  dreamed  that  the  Mes- 
siah might  be  outside  the  Holy  Land. 


i6o       THE  LIFE  AND  TIMES  OF  JESUS 

Nevertheless,  Jesus  bade  the  disciples  not  to  tell 
others  that  he  was  the  Messiah.  It  was  to  be  a  secret. 
For  if  the  people  heard  of  it  they  would  try,  in  their 
excitement,  to  start  a  revolution  against  the  Romans 
and  make  Jesus  their  king.  And  Jesus  was  not  to  be  a 
king;  he  was  not  that  kind  of  a  Messiah. 

What  kind  of  a  Messiah  was  Jesus? — The  Jews 
expected  the  Messiah  to  be  a  king,  as  we  have  already 
seen.  He  was  to  be  a  great  ruler,  like  King  David,  de- 
scribed in  the  Old  Testament  (and  so  they  called  the 
Messiah  "the  Son  of  David") ;  he  would  probably  be  a 
warrior,  like  David,  and  conquer  the  enemies  of  Israel. 
Or  he  might  be  a  prophet,  some  said,  who  would  know 
all  things;  and,  like  Moses,  he  would  guide  the  people 
through  difficulty  and  trouble  with  his  miracles  and 
inspired  words.  Or  he  might  perhaps  be  a  priest,  like 
the  great  Simeon  the  Righteous;  he  would  purify  the 
nation  from  its  sin,  and  lead  the  people  forever  in  per- 
fect observance  of  the  Law. 

Still  others  thought  that  the  Messiah  was  the  "one 
like  unto  a  son  of  man"  whom  Daniel  had  seen  in  his 
vision  (Daniel  7:  13-14) — a  heavenly,  angelic  being  who 
should  descend  from  the  sky  with  his  angels,  raise  the 
righteous  dead  from  their  graves,  hold  the  judgment, 
punish  the  wicked,  and  reign  over  the  kingdom  of  the 
risen  righteous  in  a  new  world.  There  no  death,  nor 
sickness,  nor  pain,  nor  poverty,  nor  storms,  nor  any- 
thing evil  or  defiling  should  be  permitted  to  exist. 

But  none  of  those  who  were  so  ardently  looking  for- 
ward to  the  Messiah's  coming  expected  him  to  be  a 
Teacher.  No  one  thought  he  would  go  about  from 
place  to  place  with  a  band  of  disciples,  preaching  in  the 
synagogues  like  a  rabbi,  talking  to  groups  of  men  and 
women  and  children  wherever  they  gathered  about  him. 


THE  DISCIPLES'  FAITH  IN  JESUS        i6i 

Jesus  the  Teacher.— Yet  that  is  the  kind  of  a  Mes- 
siah Jesus  was.  That  is  what  he  was  led  to  become  by 
the  guidance  of  his  Father,  when  he  "returned  in  the 
Spirit"  into  Gahlee  after  his  baptism  and  temptation, 
and  began  his  ministry  among  the  people. 

He  was  a  Teacher.  That  is  what  the  words  mean, 
which  are  used  so  frequently  in  the  gospels— rabbi, 
master,  lord.  And  that  is  why  he  spent  the  greatest 
part  of  his  time  in  teaching,  first  the  multitudes,  and 
then  the  Twelve. 

And  also  that  is  one  reason  why  he  was  rejected  and 
crucified.  People  wanted  a  king,  a  warrior  who  could 
fight  for  them,  or  a  prophet  who  could  work  miracles 
for  them,  or  a  priest  who  could  offer  sacrifices  for  their 
sins,  or  a  heavenly  Messiah  seated  on  the  clouds  and  sur- 
rounded by  angels.  They  did  not  want  one  who  should 
be  first  of  all  a  teacher,  one  who  came  to  tell  them  their 
faults  and  to  help  them  to  overcome  them;  to  instruct 
them  in  the  way  of  righteousness;  to  make  them  be 
honest  with  themselves  and  with  God;  to  make  them 
think  clearly  and  act  sincerely  and  love  their  un- 
lovely neighbors.  No;  that  seemed  too  humble— they 
wanted  a  Messiah  who  should  be  more  grand  and 
powerful. 

But    the  Messiah  whom   God  sent  them  began  his 
work  as  a  Teacher. 

STUDY  TOPICS 

1.  Where  did  Jesus  go  when  he  left  Galilee?    See  Mark 

8:27. 

2.  Tell  how  the  Pharisees  undertook  to  use  the  fact  of 

John's  death  to  get  rid  of  Jesus.    What  did  Jesus 
do  in  response  to  their  scheme  ? 

3.  Where  was  Csesarea  Philippi?     Who  built  the  city? 

And  in  whose  honor  was  it  named? 


i62        THE  LIFE  AND  TIMES  OF  JESUS 

4.  What  did  the  people  think  of  Jesus,  according  to  the 

words  of  the  disciples  gi\'-en  above  in  the  lesson  ? 

5.  What  kind  of  a  Messiah  did  the  disciples  expect  Jesus 

to  become? 

6.  What  kind  of  a  Messiah  was  Jesus  ? 


CHAPTER  XXIV 

ALONE  WITH  THE  TWELVE 

"And  he  began  to  teach  that  the  Son  of  Man  (Uie 
Messiah)  must  suffer  many  things — and  he  spake 
the  sajring  openly." 

This  seemed  the  strangest  of  teachings!  That  the 
Messiah  must  suffer  and  die,  and  then  rise  again — just 
as  the  righteous  were  expected  to  rise  again  in  order 
to  enter  the  Kingdom  of  God! 

"Peter  objected  and  began  to  contradict  him.  But 
turning  about,  and  seeing  his  disciples,  he  rebuked 
Peter  with  the  words,  'Get  thee  behind  me,  Satan! 
Your  mind  is  set  on  the  things  of  men,  not  on  the 
things  of  God.* 

"And  he  called  to  him  the  multitude  with  his  dis- 
ciples, and  said  to  them,  'If  any  man  would  come 
after  me,  let  him  deny  himself  and  take  up  his  cross 
and  follow  me.  Whoever  woidd  save  his  life  shall 
lose  it;  and  whoever  loses  his  life  for  my  sake  and 
the  gospel's  shall  save  it.  .  .  . 

"  'For  whoever  shall  be  ashamed  of  me  and  of  my 
words  in  this  sinful  generation,  the  Son  of  Man  also 
shall  be  ashamed  of  him,  when  he  comes  in  the 
glory  of  his  Father  with  the  holy  angels.* 

"And  he  said  to  them,  'I  tell  you  truly,  There  are 
some  of  those  that  stand  here  who  shall  by  no  means 
taste  of  death  till  they  see  the  Kingdom  of  God 
come  with  power.'  " — ^Mark  8: 31 — 9:  i. 

Is  it  not  strange  that  the  very  same  Peter  who  was 
blessed  when  he  confessed  his  faith  in  Jesus'  Messiah- 

163 


i64        THE  LIFE  AND  TIMES  OF  JESUS 

ship  should  now  be  rebuked  for  contradicting  his  Mas- 
ter? But  Peter  still  supposed  that  Jesus  was  to  be  the 
kind  of  a  Messiah  the  people  expected — not  the  kind 
Jesus  knew  himself  to  be. 

JESUS  APPROACHING  DEATH 

Strange  as  the  teaching  was,  that  the  Messiah  must 

die  and  rise  again;  strange  as  it  seemed  to  Peter  that 

Jesus  himself  must  suffer,  the  Master  saw  it  clearly. 

He  saw  it  in  the  "signs  of  the  times,"  and  he  read  it  in 

/the  Bible. 

"The  signs  of  the  times." — John,  the  Messenger  of 
the  Covenant,  had  been  put  to  death.  Herod  Antipas, 
who  had  slain  him,  was  reported  to  be  "anxious  to  see" 
Jesus.  The  scribes  and  Pharisees  had  joined  hands  with 
the  "Herodians"  to  put  Jesus  out  of  the  way,  either  to 
cast  him  into  prison  or  to  procure  his  death.  The  peo- 
ple still  flocked  after  Jesus,  but  they  came  expecting  to 
see  signs  and  wonders,  to  witness  wonderful  cures,  rather 
than  to  repent  of  their  sins  and  get  ready  to  enter  the 
Kingdom  of  God.  There  were  some,  the  Zealots,  who 
were  disappointed  in  Jesus — they  expected  him  to  re- 
store the  kingdom  to  Israel,  and  set  himself  up  as  the 
king;  and  when  Jesus  refused  to  do  this  they  were  ready 
to  turn  against  him. 

It  was  clear  to  Jesus  that  a  crisis  was  fast  approach- 
ing. Either  the  scribes  and  Pharisees,  Herod's  courtiers 
and  the  disappointed  Zealots,  would  succeed,  or  else 
the  people  as  a  whole  would  accept  him  as  the  Messiah 
when  the  hour  came  to  make  his  public  claim.  One  or 
the  other  would  win — both  could  not. 

He  stood  alone  as  the  champion  of  outcast  and  poor, 
as  the  Teacher  sent  from  God,  against  all  the  jealousy 
and  hatred  and  intrigue  of  his  opponents.    And  he  knew 


ALONE  WITH  THE  TWELVE  165 

that  very  likely  he  would  be  put  to  death.  But  he  was 
following  his  Father's  guidance  in  all  things.  And  if  it 
was  necessary  for  him  to  drink  the  cup  of  suffering  he 
would  not  flinch;  he  knew  that  it  was  for  the  best,  and 
that  God  could  raise  him  again,  even  from  death,  to  be 
His  Messiah,  in  His  Kingdom. 

Light  from  the  Bible. — And  it  was  clear  also 
from  the  Bible,  that  is,  the  Old  Testament,  that 
persecution  and  suffering  had  been  the  lot  of  God's 
messengers  in  the  past.  "No  prophet  is  without  honor, 
except  in  his  own  town,"  he  had  told  his  old  friends  at 
Nazareth,  when  they  turned  against  him  and  threatened 
him  with  death.  The  sad  truth  now  became  apparent 
that  prophets  had  almost  always  been  put  to  death- 
such  was  their  fate,  though  afterward  men  had  built 
fine  tombs  over  their  graves.  "It  is  impossible,"  he 
said  to  his  disciples,  "that  a  prophet  should  perish 
outside  Jerusalem!" 

And  if  the  prophets  sent  by  God  had  been  put  to 
death,  was  it  likely  that  the  Messiah— His  last  and 
greatest  messenger,  even  His  own  Son — would  be 
treated  any  better? 

Then  there  were  many  passages  in  the  Old  Testament 
which  referred  to  someone's  suffering.  People  did  not 
know  whose  suffering  was  referred  to;  but  Jesus  applied 
the  words  to  himself.  It  was  he  himself,  even  though 
he  was  Messiah,  who  must  lay  down  his  life  in  that  way. 

There  was  the  twenty-second  Psalm,  which  began, 
"My  God,  my  God, 
Why  hast  thou  forsaken  me?" 
It  describes  one  who  was  "a  reproach  of  men  and  de- 
spised by  the  people";  all  that  saw  him  "laughed  him 
to  scorn"  as  he  lay  dying,  his  hands  and  feet  pierced, 
and  his  "strength  dried  up  like  a  potsherd." 


i66        THE  LIFE  AND  TIMES  OF  JESUS 


/ 


The  suffering  Servant  of  the  Lord. — There  was 
also  that  chapter  in  Isaiah,  chapter  53,  which  describes 
even  more  clearly  the  Servant  of  the  Lord  "despised 
and  rejected  of  men,  a  man  of  sorrows  and  acquainted 
with  grief."  He  was  "led  like  a  sheep  to  be  slaugh- 
tered"; and  yet  in  his  suffering  he  "bore  the  griefs  of 
others,"  and  "carried  their  sorrows";  he  was  "wounded 
for  their  transgressions,"  the  "chastisement  of  their 
peace  was  upon  him." 

The  people  wondered  who  it  was  who  suffered  in 
this  way  for  the  sins  of  others.  Some  thought  the 
prophet  was  describing  himself;  others,  that  he  referred 
to  someone  unknown,  or  even  in  a  figurative  way  to  the 
nation  suffering  in  exile.  But  Jesus  saw  clearly  that  it 
meant  the  Messiah — not  the  king  Messiah  whom  the 
people  expected,  but  himself. 

And  he  recognized  that  this  also  was  the  will  of  the 
''%  Father.  The  way  had  been  opening  gradually  before 
him  since  his  baptism.  When  he  was  tempted  by  Satan 
to  use  his  powers  to  preserve  himself,  to  dazzle  the 
multitudes  with  some  great  miracle  in  the  temple,  to 
seize  the  kingdoms  of  this  world  by  military  force,  he 
had  refused.  For  he  left  all  in  his  Father's  hands.  The 
way  now  seemed  to  be  leading  him  to  suffering  and 
death.  But  he  believed  that  it  was  his  Father's  will, 
and  his  obedience  was  perfect  and  unquestioning. 
Wherever  the  way  might  lead  him  he  would  follow 
without  faltering. 

THE   TRANSFIGURATION 

This  helps  us  to  understand  the  meaning  of  the 
vision  which  Peter  and  James  and  John  had  soon  after 
on  the  mountain  top.  They  believed  that  Jesus  was 
the  Messiah,  although  they  could  not  realize  that  the 


ALONE  WITH  THE  TWELVE  167 

Messiah  must  suffer  and  die.  And  his  teaching  that 
the  Messiah  must  suffer  and  die  was  a  stumbling-block 
to  their  faith. 

On  the  mountain-top. — About  a  week  after  Peter's 
confession,  one  early  spring  morning,  Jesus  went  up 
into  a  mountain  to  pray.  He  often  did  this,  sometimes 
spending  whole  days  and  nights  in  prayer.  He  took 
with  him  his  three  closest  friends  and  disciples,  Peter 
and  James  and  John.  And  while  he  was  praying  his 
countenance  was  altered  and  became  bright  and  shin- 
ing, and  the  glory  of  heaven  shone  forth  in  it.  Even 
his  garments  seemed  to  grow  white  and  to  glisten. 
There  appeared  to  him  the  two  great  prophets  of  the 
Old  Testament,  Moses  the  Lawgiver  and  Elijah.  They 
also  appeared  in  glory,  and  spoke  with  him  about  his 
approaching  death  in  Jerusalem. 

The  Voice  from  the  cloud. — Peter  and  the  two 
other  disciples  shared  the  vision.  Not  knowing  what 
to  say,  Peter  exclaimed,  ** Master,  it  is  good  for  us  to 
be  here.  Let  us  make  three  tabernacles,  one  for  you, 
one  for  Moses,  and  one  for  Elijah."  But  even  while 
Peter  spoke  a  cloud  of  mist  surrounded  them  and  they 
heard  a  voice  saying,  "This  is  my  beloved  Son,  hear  ye 
liim."  And  when  the  voice  was  past  the  cloud  disap- 
peared and  Jesus  was  there  alone  with  them. 

The  meaning  of  the  Transfiguration. — The  dis- 
ciples never  forgot  this  experience.  There,  on  the 
mountain  top,  with  the  mists  forming  and  fading  about 
them,  and  the  spring  sunshine  pouring  its  flood  of  gold 
over  the  earth,  they  had  seen  Jesus  in  his  glory!  It  was 
no  longer  a  matter  of  faith  alone — they  had  actually 
seen  Jesus  as  the  Messiah!  Even  though  he  might  still 
have  to  suffer  and  die,  they  knew  he  was  the  Coming 
One.    They  would  never  forsake  him  now;  they  would 


i68        THE  LIFE  AND  TIMES  OF  JESUS 

follow  him,  if  need  be,  even  unto  death.  The  Voice 
from  the  cloud  which  they  had  heard,  and  the  vision  of 
Jesus  in  his  glory,  confirmed  Peter's  words  of  faith  in 
him,  "You  are  the  Messiah,  the  Son  of  God." 

Not  only  was  Jesus  ready  to  accept  whatever  course 
lay  before  him,  in  obedience  to  his  Father's  will;  the 
disciples  also  were  now  ready  to  follow  him  to  the  very 
end. 

STUDY  TOPICS 

1.  Try  to  imagine  how  the  disciples  felt  when  Jesus  told 

them  that  he  was  going  to  die.  Bear  in  mind  that 
they  expected  him  to  become  a  king  and  reign  on 
"the  throne  of  David"  in  Jerusalem. 

2.  What  were  the  indications  that  a  crisis  was  at  hand  in 

the  career  of  Jesus  and  that  his  enemies  would  seek 
his  death? 

3.  What  light  did  the  Bible  throw  on  Jesus'  future  as  the 

Messiah  ?    Look  up  Psalm  2  2  and  Isaiah  53 . 

4.  Tell  the  story  of  the  Transfiguration,  and  show  its 

meaning  for  the  disciples. 

5.  Commit  to  memory  the  sentence,  in  the  passage  from 

Isaiah  referred  to  in  this  chapter,  which  impresses 
you  most. 


CHAPTER  XXV 
JOURNEYING  TO  JERUSALEM 

As  the  Passover  now  drew  near,  Jesus  set  out  with 
liis  disciples  for  Jerusalem.  Every  year,  since  he  was  a 
boy  of  twelve,  he  had  gone  up  to  Jerusalem  for  the 
great  feast.  But  this  time  he  knew  that  he  was  going 
there  in  the  very  gravest  danger.  Somehow,  the  au- 
thorities, the  scribes  and  Pharisees,  the  Herodians  and 
the  Sadducean  high  priests,  were  sure  to  succeed  in  their 
efforts  to  put  him  to  death.  And  yet  he  knew  that  even 
if  death  awaited  him  there,  it  was  his  Father's  will  for 
him  to  go. 

The  missionaries  who  went  out  to  Asia  and  Africa 
fifty  or  a  hundred  years  ago — men  like  Livingstone  and 
Cary  and  Paton— knew  that  they  "took  their  lives  in 
their  hands,"  and  might  very  likely  suffer  death  among 
those  they  went  to  serve.  No — their  lives  were  not 
*'in  their  hands,"  but  in  the  hands  of  God.  He  would 
care  for  them;  and  if  they  were  killed,  even  their  mar- 
tyrdom mjght  convince  their  murderers  of  the  truth  of 
the  gospel.  And  so  it  w^as;  the  heroic  death  of  the 
missionary  proved  to  men  that  Christianity  could  at 
least  make  men  brave  enough  to  die  for  their  faith.  It 
has  always  been  this  way  in  the  history  of  Christianity. 
"The  blood  of  the  martyrs  is  the  seed  of  the  Church." 

This  helps  us  to  understand  why  Jesus  went  to  Jeru- 
salem, knowing  that  he  would  probably  be  put  to  death. 
And  did  you  ever  think  of  this? — that  no  missionary 
would  ever  have  gone  out  to  teach  the  gospel  if  Jesus 
had  not  gone  up  to  Jerusalem  to  die?    We  should  never 

169 


I70        THE  LIFE  AND  TIMES  OF  JESUS 

have  heard  of  Jesus,  we  should  still  be  savages,  hving 
in  bark  houses,  fighting  some  nearby  tribe,  wearing  the 
skins  of  animals  and  worshiping  evil  spirits. 

WHAT  THE  DISCIPLES   THOUGHT 

But  even  though  Jesus  told  the  disciples  the  great 
danger  he  faced  in  going  to  Jerusalem,  they  could  not 
realize  it.  It  seemed  to  them  that  he  must  be  going  up 
to  Jerusalem  to  proclaim  himself  king  and  ascend  his 
throne  as  Messiah.  They  pictured  to  themselves  the 
splendor  of  his  kingdom,  how  he  should  have  an  army 
of  soldiers,  and  servants  eager  to  wait  on  him,  and 
angels  coming  down  from  heaven  to  obey  his  commands. 
They  themselves,  they  thought,  would  sit  on  twelve 
thrones,  judging  the  twelve  tribes  of  Israel  in  the  king- 
dom. Jesus  would  be  king  over  all,  and  they  would 
each  be  governing  a  tribe. 

Who  is  greatest? — As  they  journeyed  on,  the  dis- 
ciples fell  into  a  dispute  over  which  should  be  greatest 
in  tliis  kingdom.  When  Jesus  heard  them  he  called  to 
him  a  Httle  child  who  was  there,  and  said,  "I  tell  you 
truly,  except  you  turn  and  become  as  little  children, 
you  cannot  even  enter  the  Kingdom  of  God.  Whoever 
humbles  himself,  and  becomes  like  a  little  child,  shall 
be  greatest  in  the  Kingdom."  For  the  spirit  of  the 
disciples  was  entirely  wrong.  They  were  thinking  only 
of  themselves  and  the  honors  they  were  to  receive.  But 
Jesus  was  thinking  of  the  service  he  could  do  for  others. 
His  kingdom  was  to  be  one  in  which  men  loved  and 
served  their  fellows. 

The  request  of  James  and  John. — But  even  alter 
this  the  disciples  were  not  able  to  put  out  of  their  minds 
the  honor  and  glory  which  they  hoped  to  receive  when 
the  Kingdom  was  set  up.    One  day  James  and  John,  the 


JOURNEYING  TO  JERUSALEM  171 

sons  of  Zebedee,  came  to  Jesus  and  said,  "Master,  will 
you  do  something  for  us?  will  you  give  us  whatever 
we  ask?"  And  Jesus  replied,  "What  is  it  that  you  want 
me  to  do  for  you?"  "Grant  to  us,"  they  said,  "that  we 
may  sit,  one  at  your  right  hand  and  the  other  at  your 
left,  when  you  are  king  in  Jerusalem." 

Jesus  replied,  "You  do  not  know  what  you  are  ask- 
ing! Can  you  drink  the  cup  that  I  shall  drink?  Can 
you  be  baptized  with  the  baptism  that  I  am  to  receive? 
—Can  you  endure  what  I  am  about  to  suffer?"  "Yes, 
we  are  able,"  they  replied.  "Then,"  said  Jesus,  "the  cup 
I  drink  you  shall  drink,  and  my  baptism  you  shall  share. 
But  to  sit  at  my  right  hand  or  at  my  left  is  not  mine  to 
give.  It  is  for  those  for  whom  it  has  been  prepared — 
God  alone  shall  say  who  has  the  right  to  sit  there." 

Now  when  the  other  disciples  heard  it  they  were  very 
indignant  over  this  selfish  request  of  the  two  brothers. 
But  Jesus  called  them  all  to  him  and  said, 

"You  know  what  it  means  to  be  'great*  among  the 
Gentiles — their  rulers  lord  it  over  them;  they  give 
commands  and  the  people  obey;  they  live  in  mag- 
nificence and  luxury  and  the  people  are  poor;  yet 
they  are  called  'benefactors !'  But  that  is  not  God's 
way.  Nor  shall  it  be  that  way  among  you.  Whoever 
wishes  to  become  great  among  you,  let  him  be  your 
servant;  whoever  would  be  first,  let  him  become  last 
and  be  the  slave  of  all.  For  I  tell  you  the  truth,  the 
Messiah  himself  has  not  come  in  order  to  be  minis- 
tered unto,  but  to  serve  others,  and  to  give  his  life  a 
ransom  for  many." — Mark  10:42-45;  see  Luke  22: 
25-27. 

THE   lawyer's   question 

They  were  now  passing  through  Galilee  once  more, 
making  their  way  toward  the  south.     Once  more  the 


172        THE  LIFE  AND  TIMES  OF  JESUS 

people  gathered  about  Jesus.  For  everywhere  the  roads 
were  crowded  with  thousands  of  pilgrims  on  their  way 
to  Jerusalem  for  the  Passover. 

"Who  is  my  neighbor?" — One  day  a  lawyer— he 
must  have  been  a  scribe — came  up  to  Jesus  and  said 
to  him,  "Master,  you  are  teaching  the  people  about 
the  Kingdom  of  God.  Tell  me,  what  shall  I  do  to  enter 
the  Kingdom  and  to  inherit  eternal  hfe?"  And  Jesus 
replied,  "You  are  a  lawyer:  What  is  written  in  the 
Law?  What  do  you  read  there?"  He  answered  by 
quoting  the  Law,  "  'Thou  shalt  love  the  Lord  thy  God 
with  all  thy  heart  and  with  all  thy  soul  and  with  all  thy 
mind  and  with  all  thy  strength';  and  'thy  neighbor  as 
thyself.'  "  Then  Jesus  said,  "You  have  answered  cor- 
rectly; do  this  and  you  shall  Uve." 

But  the  lawyer  was  anxious  to  "justify  himself" — he 
wanted  Jesus  to  decide  whether  or  not  he  was  good 
enough  to  enter  God's  Kingdom.  And  so  he  asked, 
"Who  is  my  neighbor?"  This  question  must  have  in- 
terested the  disciples,  for  they  had  not  long  before  been 
trying  to  get  Jesus  to  decide  what  place  they  had  in 
the  Kingdom.  And  Jesus  replied  by  telling  the  man  a 
story. 

The  Good  Samaritan. — 

"A  certain  man  was  going  down  from  Jerusalem 
to  Jericho ;  and  he  fell  among  robbers  who  stripped 
and  beat  him  and  departed,  leaving  him  half-dead. 
And  by  chance  a  certain  priest  was  going  down  that 
way,  and  when  he  saw  the  man  he  passed  by  on  the 
other  side.  And  likewise  a  Levite,  when  he  came  to 
the  place  and  saw  him,  passed  by  on  the  other  side. 
But  a  certain  Samaritan,  as  he  journeyed,  came 
where  he  was.  And  when  he  saw  him  he  was  moved 
with  compassion,  and  came  to  him,  and  bound  up 


JOURNEYING  TO  JERUSALEM  173 

his  wounds,  pouring  in  oil  and  wine.  Then  he  set 
him  upon  his  own  beast  and  brought  him  to  an  inn 
and  took  care  of  him.  And  the  next  day,  as  he  was 
leaving,  he  took  out  two  pieces  of  money  and  gave 
them  to  the  inn-keeper  and  said,  'Take  care  of  him. 
And  whatever  more  you  spend,  when  I  come  back 
this  way  I  will  repay  you.'  " — Luke  10:  30-35. 

Then  Jesus  asked  the  lawyer,  ''Which  of  these  three 
do  you  think  was  a  good  neighbor  to  the  man  who  fell 
among  the  thieves?"  He  replied,  "He  that  showed 
mercy  on  him."  "Then,"  said  Jesus,  "go  and  do  like- 
wise." 

Whose  neighbor  am  I? — Do  you  notice  something 
about  Jesus'  answer?  The  man  asked  Jesus  to  say 
just  who  were  his  neighbors,  whether  Jews  or  Gentiles, 
whether  rich  or  poor,  whether  people  living  next  door 
or  somewhere  else.  For  the  lawyer  did  not  wish  to 
waste  his  kindness.  If  there  were  any  persons  to  whom 
God  did  not  require  him  to  be  generous  he  wanted  to 
know  it. 

Jesus  did  not  answer  by  saying,  "The  man  who  was 
robbed  and  beaten  is  your  neighbor."  Instead,  he 
asked,  "Who  was  it  that  acted  the  part  of  a  neighbor 
to  Mw?"  That  makes  all  the  difference  in  the  world. 
If  you  merely  wish  to  be  good  to  others  because  the 
Law  requires  it,  or  because  you  wish  to  be  well  thought 
of,  you  will  not  be  very  good.  God  wants  you  to  be 
good  to  others  because  they  need  your  help,  and  be- 
cause you  love  them  as  much  as  you  do  yourself. 

"Who  gives  himself  with  his  gift  feeds  three, 
Himself,  his  himgering  neighbor,  and  Me." 

This  lesson  the  disciples  needed  to  learn  just  as  much 
as  the  lawyer.    I  wonder  if  we  also  need  to  learn  it? 


174        THE  LIFE  AND  TIMES  OF  JESUS 

STUDY  TOPICS      - 

1.  What  was  the  origm  of  the  Passover?    Why  was  it 

kept?    See  Chapter  4. 

2.  When  missionaries  laid  down  their  lives  has  their  sac- 

rifice seemed  fruitless?  Was  their  work  wasted? 
Jesus  left  no  message  written  by  himself.  How 
then  did  he  expect  his  gospel  to  be  spread? 

3.  What  was  Jesus'  answer  to  the  question,   "Who  is 

greatest  in  the  Kingdom?"  Has  this  a  present-day 
application  ? 

4.  Tell  the  story  of  the  request  of  James  and  John. 

5.  Tell  the  story  of  the  Good  Samaritan,  and  show  how 

it  answered  the  lawyer's  question. 

6.  When  Jesus  went  up  to  Jerusalem,  facing  the  death 

which  his  enemies  were  plotting  against  him,  do  you 
think  he  was  like  the  Good  Samaritan?  Remember 
that  in  getting  off  his  beast  and  ministering  to  the 
injured  man,  the  Samaritan  was  running  the  risk  of 
himself  being  robbed  and  beaten  by  the  robbers. 
But  he  did  not  hesitate,  for  he  was  brave  as  well  as 
loving. 


CHAPTER  XXVI 
IN  JUD^A 

As  they  journeyed  on,  Jesus  sent  out  his  disciples 
to  the  villages  which  he  himself  had  not  been  able  to 
visit.  Here  they  laid  their  hands  on  the  sick,  just  as 
Jesus  did,  and  cast  out  the  evil  spirits  and  preached, 
saying  that  the  Kingdom  of  God  was  nigh  at  hand. 
This  was  Jesus*  final  appeal  to  the  people  of  Galilee, 
calling  them  to  repent  and  prepare  for  the  coming  of 
the  Kingdom. 

Every  day  as  the  Passover  drew  nearer  the  crowds 
continued  to  increase.  Great  multitudes  were  now  fol- 
lowing Jesus  and  accompanying  him  to  the  Holy  City, 
for  the  feast.  They  were  glad  to  be  in  his  company, 
for  they  had  heard  him  teach  and  seen  him  heal,  and 
they  expected  the  Kingdom  to  be  set  up  at  once.  Of 
course,  they,  like  the  twelve  disciples,  expected  the 
Kingdom  to  be  an  earthly  one.  Jesus,  they  thought, 
was  going  to  Jerusalem  to  be  crowned  as  king! 

FAREWELL   TO   GALILEE 

Some  of  the  \illages  which  the  disciples  visited  wel- 
comed them.  Others  refused  to  receive  them  or  their 
message.  It  was  just  as  it  had  been  all  along  in  Jesus' 
ministry.  There  were  those  who  heard  and  heeded  the 
message;  others  turned  away. 

Jesus  rejected. — As  they  were  leaving  Galilee  Jesus 
thought  about  his  work  there;  how  he  had  healed  the 
sick;  how  he  had  taught  the  people  in  the  synagogues; 

175 


176        THE  LIFE  AND  TIMES  OF  JESUS 

how  only  a  few  had  responded  to  liis  teaching,  while 
most  of  the  people  had  rejected  his  message.  And  he 
said, 

"Woe  to  thee.  Chorazin!  Woe  to  thee,  Bethsaida! 
For  if  the  mighty  works  done  in  you  had  been  done 
in  Tyre  and  Sidon,  they  would  have  repented  long 
ago  in  sackcloth  and  ashes!  They  shall  be  far  bet- 
ter off  in  the  day  of  judgment  than  you ! 

"And  thou,  Capernaum — shalt  thou  be  exalted  to 
heaven?  Thou  shalt  be  brought  down  to  destruc- 
tion!"— ^Luke  10 :  13-15. 

Jesus'  disappointment. — The  cities  of  Galilee  had 
had  their  day  of  opportunity,  and  they  had  let  it  sHp 
by.  They  v/ere  full  of  people,  happy  and  sad,  rich  and 
poor,  the  honored  and  the  despised.  The  greatest  thing 
in  the  world,  which  they  lacked,  was  repentance  and 
righteousness:  they  needed  to  accept  Jesus'  teaching 
and  follow  it  in  their  lives.  But  their  business  came 
first  and  their  pleasures.  And  they  w^ere  afraid  to  dis- 
agree with  the  scribes  and  Pharisees.  They  might  have 
become  the  greatest  cities  in  the  world.  To-day  they 
do  not  even  exist :  only  scattered  stones  mark  the  places 
where  once  they  stood. 

Jesus  had  expected  greater  things  of  them;  his  rejec- 
tion was  a  heartbreaking  disappointment. 

AT  JERICHO 

Leaving  GaHlee,  they  followed  the  road  down  along 
the  Jordan;  near  Jericho  it  turned  westward,  and  they 
began  the  ascent  to  Jerusalem. 

Bartimaeus. — Just  outside  the  city  of  Jericho  a  beg- 
gar sat  beside  the  road.  He  was  bHnd,  and  his  name 
was  Bartimaeus.     He  had  heard  of  Jesus  and  of  his 


IN  JUD^A  177 

power  to  heal;  and  he  had  for  a  long  while  been  hoping 
that  some  day  Jesus  would  pass  this  way  and  heal 
him  too. 

As  he  now  heard  the  multitude  passing  by,  he  in- 
quired what  it  meant.  They  told  him  that  Jesus  of 
Nazareth  was  passing  by.  Immediately  he  sprang  up 
and  rushed  out  into  the  road,  crying,  ''Jesus,  Jesus, 
Son  of  David,  have  mercy  on  me!"  Some  in  the  crowd 
told  him  to  be  quiet,  but  he  cried  out  more  than  ever, 
''Have  mercy  on  me!" 

Jesus  heard  him  and  told  the  disciples  to  bring  the 
man  before  him.  When  he  came,  he  asked,  "What  do 
you  wish  me  to  do  for  you?"  Bartimasus  replied,  "Lord, 
that  I  may  receive  my  sight!"  Then  Jesus  said  to  him, 
"Your  faith  has  saved  you;  receive  your  sight."  Im- 
mediately the  blindness  left  him,  he  received  his  sight, 
and  followed  Jesus.  And  the  people,  when  they  saw 
what  had  taken  place,  praised  God.  And  so  they 
passed  on,  glorifying  God  for  what  Jesus  had  done. 

Zacchaeus.— In  Jericho  there  lived  a  man  named 
Zacchaeus.  He  was  the  chief  tax-gatherer,  or  publican, 
and  he  was  very  rich.  For  there  were  great  palm  groves 
north  of  the  city,  and  the  taxes  which  Zacchaus  col- 
lected were  large  in  amount.  He  had  heard  that  Jesus 
was  coming  and  he  was  very  anxious  to  see  him.  As  he 
was^  short  in  stature,  he  climbed  into  a  sycamore  tree, 
hoping  there  to  catch  just  a  glimpse  of  Jesus. 

When  Jesus  and  his  crowd  of  followers  came  near,  the 
Master  looked  up  and  saw  Zacchaeus  sitring  in  the  tree, 
and  called  out  to  him  to  come  down.  For  he  wished  to 
stay  that  night  at  his  house. 

Hearing  this,  Zacchaeus  jumped  down  and  ran  to 
Jesus.  He  had  never  expected  this  high  honor,  actually 
to  entertain  the  great  teacher  in  his  own  home!     It 


178       THE  LIFE  AND  TIMES  OF  JESUS 

seemed  to  him  that  he  must  explain — perhaps  Jesus  did 
not  realize  that  he  was  a  publican;  if  he  knew,  perhaps 
he  would  not  wish  to  stay  with  him.  The  crowd  stand- 
ing by  saved  him  this  trouble,  for  they  asked,  "Is  he 
going  to  be  the  guest  of  a  sinner?" 

Zacchaeus  did  not  deny  that  he  was  a  sinner.  His 
conscience  told  him  he  had  more  than  once  de- 
frauded the  taxpayers  of  Jericho.  And  Jesus  surely 
knew  that  he  was  a  sinner,  not  that  he  looked  upon  him 
as  "defiled"  and  "unclean,"  as  the  Pharisees  said  (be- 
cause he  did  business  with  the  Gentiles),  but  because 
he  had  been  mean  and  unfair,  and  cheated,  and  took 
advantage  of  people  in  order  to  make  more  money. 
Nevertheless,  Jesus  was  willing  to  become  his  guest, 
and  spend  the  night  at  his  house !  Any  Pharisee  would 
have  scorned  the  invitation  of  such  a  man  as  Zacchaeus; 
but  Jesus,  far  differently,  was  honoring  him  with  the 
promise  to  come  before  Zacchaeus  even  asked  him! 

The  rich  publican  was  touched  at  the  heart,  And 
so,  as  he  stood  before  Jesus,  he  said,  "Master,  behold, 
half  of  my  goods  I  shall  give  to  the  poor;  and  what- 
ever I  have  taken  wrongfully  from  others  I  shall  restore 
fourfold!"  Jesus  replied,  "To-day  has  salvation  come 
to  this  house,  forasmuch  as  he  also  is  a  son  of  Abraham." 
So  Jesus  went  home  with  Zacchaeus  and  was  his  guest. 

THE  PARABLE  OF  THE  TALENTS 

It  is  very  easy  to  judge  people  by  what  they  seem  to 
be.  Good,  pious  people  in  Jesus'  time — like  many  of 
the  Pharisees — looked  down  upon  the  "sinners";  almost 
everyone  despised  the  "publicans";  and  to  call  anyone 
a  "Gentile"  was  the  most  offensive  name  one  could  use. 
When  Jesus  went  to  Zacchaeus'  house,  many  persons 
were  utterly  shocked  and  scandalized. 


IN  JUD^A  179 

But  Jesus  knew  that  what  a  person  really  is,  in  God's 
sight,  is  often  very  dififerent  from  what  he  appears  to  be 
in  the  eyes  of  others.  That  is  why  he  said,  "Judge  not, 
that  you  may  not  be  judged."  As  one  of  the  ancient 
prophets  had  taught,  *'Man  looks  on  the  outward  ap- 
pearance, but  God  looks  on  the  heart." 

Real  religion. — What  makes  a  man  pleasing  to  God 
is  not  his  outward  appearance  of  goodness,  his  prayers 
in  the  synagogue,  or  his  fasting  twice  a  week.  What 
matters  is  his  real  religion,  down  in  his  heart,  and  what 
he  does  when  no  one  is  watching  him. 

Possessing  great  advantages  in  the  world  does  not 
mean  that  a  person  is  therefore  going  to  be  saved. 
People  thought  that  being  a  Jew,  "a  child  of  Abra- 
ham," was  enough  to  entitle  anyone  to  enter  the 
Kingdom  of  God.  But  Jesus  taught  that  this  was  a 
great  mistake.  It  is  not  the  possession  of  advantages, 
it  is  the  use  we  make  of  them  that  matters  in  the  sight 
of  God. 

The  Three  Servants.— Jesus  made  this  clear  by 
another  story— perhaps  he  told  it  to  the  people  that 
day  in  Jericho  when  they  saw  him  go  to  the  house  of 
Zacchaeus: 

"A  certain  man,  going  into  another  country,  called 
his  servants,  and  gave  them  charge  of  his  property. 
To  one  he  intrusted  five  talents  (about  $5,000),  to 
another  two,  to  another  one,  according  to  their  abil- 
ity.   Then  he  went  on  his  journey. 

"Straightway  the  man  who  received  five  talents 
went  and  traded  with  them  and  made  five  more. 
So  did  he  who  received  two  talents;  he  doubled  his 
capital.  But  the  servant  who  received  one  talent 
went  and  dug  a  hole  in  the  groimd  and  hid  his  lord's 
money. 


i8o        THE  LIFE  AND  TIMES  OF  JESUS 

"After  a  long  time  the  master  of  those  servants 
returned  and  called  for  an  account  of  his  money. 
He  who  received  the  five  talents  came  and  brought 
five  other  talents,  saying,  'Sir,  you  delivered  to  me 
five  talents;  I  have  gained  five  talents  more.'  The 
master  said  to  him,  'Well  done,  good  and  faithful 
servant;  you  have  been  faithful  over  a  few  things — 
I  will  set  you  over  many.  Enter  into  the  joy  of  your 
lord!' 

"He  also  who  received  the  two  talents  came  and 
said,  'Sir,  you  intrusted  me  with  two  talents;  I 
have  gained  two  others.'  The  master  said  to  him, 
'Well  done,  good  and  faithful  servant;  you  have 
been  faithful  over  a  few  things — I  will  set  you  over 
many.    Enter  into  the  joy  of  your  lord.' 

"Then  he  who  received  the  one  talent  came  and 
said,  'Sir,  I  knew  that  you  are  a  hard  man  to  deal 
with;  you  reap  where  you  have  not  sowed,  and 
gather  where  you  have  not  scattered.  I  was  afraid, 
therefore,  and  went  and  hid  your  talent  in  the  earth. 
Here  it  is.* 

"But  the  master  answered,  'You  wicked  and  sloth- 
ful servant !  You  knew  that  I  reap  where  I  have  not 
sowed,  and  gather  where  I  have  not  scattered.  You 
should  therefore  have  given  my  money  to  the  bank- 
ers; then  at  my  coming  I  should  at  least  have  re- 
ceived back  my  own  with  interest!  .  .  .  Take  away 
the  talent  from  him  and  give  it  to  the  one  with  ten 
talents.'  " — Matthew  25: 14-28. 

It  is  not  the  possession  but  the  use  we  make  of  our 
talents,  our  gifts,  our  privileges — whatever  they  are — 
that  makes  us  pleasing  to  our  Father  in  heaven.  The 
publican  Zacchaeus,  now  that  he  had  repented  and  was 
trying  to  do  the  will  of  God,  was  a  better  man  than 
the  proudest  Pharisee  in  Jericho,  who  looked  down 
on  him. 


IN  JUD^A  i8i 

STUDY  TOPICS 

1.  Did  many  people  go  to  the  Passover  each  year  in  Jeru- 

salem ? 

2.  What  did  the  disciples  expect  Jesus  to  do  when  he 

reached  Jerasalem? 

3 .  Why  was  Jesus  sad  as  he  left  Galilee  ? 

4.  Tell  the  story  of  Bartimaeus. 

5.  Who  was  Zacchasus?    Tell  the  story.    Was  he  a  good 

or  a  bad  man?  Why  did  the  Pharisees  look  down 
on  him? 

6.  How  did  the  Parable  of  the  Talents  show  what  God 

expects  of  people  who  possess  advantages  over  their 
neighbors  ? 

7.  God  "expects  much  from  the  one  to  whom  much  is 

given."  Some  of  the  advantages  people  enjoy,  as 
gifts  from  Him,  are  education,  money,  good  homes, 
citizenship,  special  talents  like  musical  ability  or 
mechanical  skill,  and  so  on.  Show  how  these  ought 
to  be  used  for  God. 


CHAPTER  XXVII 
ENTERING  JERUSALEM 

It  was  spring  once  more,  and  toward  the  end  of 
March,  The  days  were  growing  longer,  for  the  sun  now 
rose  earlier  in  the  morning  and  set  later  in  the  evening. 
The  hills  were  turning  green  again,  even  in  rocky  Judaea. 
The  air  was  fresh  and  sweet,  and  along  the  roadside 
the  birds  were  building  their  nests  in  the  trees  and 
bushes. 

The  days  were  warm,  but  the  nights  were  still  raw 
and  chill.  A  glorious  paschal  moon  lighted  up  the  dark- 
ness; night  by  night  it  grew  more  full  and  round.  The 
Passover  would  be  kept  the  day  after  the  full  moon 
appeared.  Out  on  the  meadows,  outside  the  city  of 
Jericho,  the  Passover  pilgrims  camped  for  the  night. 
Their  tents,  gay  with  color  in  the  daytime,  looked 
brown  and  gray  in  the  moonlight.  To-morrow  night 
they  would  be  camping  outside  the  walls  of  Jerusalem. 
But  none  of  those  happy  people,  who  had  followed  Jesus 
up  from  Galilee  to  keep  the  Passover,  dreamed  of  what 
would  take  place  before  the  Passover  arrived. 

THE  TRIUMPHAL   ENTRY 

Jesus  knew  what  might  happen,  but  he  had  no  inten- 
tion of  swerving  from  his  course.  It  was  his  plan  to 
set  forth  once  and  for  all,  before  the  assembled  nation 
at  the  Passover,  his  teaching  regarding  the  Kingdom  of 
God,  and  likewise  his  own  Messiahship.  At  last  the 
time  had  come  to  tell  his  secret.  The  Messiah,  whose 
coming  John  the  Baptist  had  announced  and  whom 

182 


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JERUSALEM  IN  THE  TIME  OF  JESUS 

1  Castle  of  Antonia:  Roman  garrison 
a  Temple 

3  Herod's  Palace,  now  occupied  by  the  Roman 

governor 

4  Home  of  the  high  priest 

,.The  Temple  stood  on  the  eastern  hill,  called 
Zion.  The  suborb  to  the  north  (The  New  Citr) 
had  DO  waU  in  the  time  of  Jesus.  ^' 


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ENTERING  JERUS.\LEM  183 

everyone  was  now  expecting,  was  here!    Jesus  himself 
was  the  Messiah. 

The  ancient  prophecy.— There  was  an  old  prophecy 
{.see  Zechariah  9)  which  said  that  the  Messiah  was  to 
come  as  a  king,  but  in  a  very  humble  guise.  Instead  of 
being  carried  at  the  head  of  an  army  of  soldiers,  he  was 
to  enter  Jerusalem  riding  on  an  ass— just  like  any 
ordinary  traveler. 

People  knew  of  this  prophecy  because  it  was  in  the 
Bible.  They  did  not  pay  much  attention  to  it,  how- 
ever, for  their  idea  of  the  Messiah  was  so  entirely  dif- 
ferent from  that.  But  Jesus,  in  teUing  his  secret  and 
setting  forth  before  the  whole  Jewish  people  the  fact 
that  he  himself  was  the  Messiah,  chose  to  do  so  s>Tn- 
bolically.  That  is.  he  would  not  make  the  claim  in 
just  so  many  words  and  say.  "I  am  the  Messiah."  For 
"Messiah"  still  meant  to  the  people  a  great  warrior- 
king.  Instead,  he  would  act  the  part  of  the  lowly  king 
in  the  prophecy  and  let  the  people  draw  their  own 
conclusion  as  to  what  it  meant. 

Riding  an  ass. — The  next  morning  they  set  out  from 
Jericho  for  Jerusalem.  It  was  only  fifteen  miles  or  so 
and  took  but  four  or  five  hours.  At  last  they  reached 
Bethany,  near  the  Mount  of  Olives.  Just  west  of  them, 
beyond  the  hill,  lay  the  city  of  Jerusalem.  Jesus  now 
sent  two  of  his  disciples  into  Bethany  to  bring  an  ass 
for  him  to  ride.  They  soon  found  an  animal  and  led  it 
to  Jesus.  Spreading  garments  on  its  back,  they  helped 
Jesus  to  mount  it.  Then  the  disciples  and  the  crowd  of 
other  pilgrims  spread  more  garments  in  the  road  and 
cut  down  branches  from  palm  trees,  likewise  scattering 
them  before  him.  This  was  just  what  was  always  done 
in  honor  of  a  king  when  he  entered  a  city  in  triumph 
And  the  multitudes  going  before  and  following  after 


i84        THE  LIFE  AND  TIMES  OF  JESUS 

shouted,  "Hosanna  to  the  Son  of  David!  Hosanna  to 
the  Son  of  David!  Blessed  is  the  king  who  comes  in 
the  name  of  the  Lord!    Hosanna  in  the  highest!" 

So,  singing  and  shouting  and  waving  palms,  they 
crossed  the  hill  by  the  road  just  north  of  the  Mount  of 
Olives,  where  they  could  see  in  plain  view  the  city  lying 
before  them.  Then  down  the  hill  and  across  the  Kidron 
valley  they  went  and  up  to  the  gates  of  the  city. 

The  objection  of  the  Pharisees. — Certain  Pharisees 
joined  the  crowd  to  see  what  was  taking  place.  They 
understood  at  once,  and  thought  the  shouts  and  cries  of 
the  multitude  were  mistaken.  If  Jesus  knew  they  were 
actually  calling  him  the  Messiah  he  would  surely  com- 
mand them  to  stop!  So  they  said  to  Jesus,  "Do  you 
hear  what  your  disciples  are  saying?  Rebuke  them!" 
But  he  answered,  "I  tell  you,  if  they  should  hold  their 
peace,  the  stones  would  cry  out!" 

IN  THE   TEMPLE 

Through  the  great  northeast  gate  of  the  city  they 
passed,  Jesus  still  riding  and  the  crowd  still  crying 
"Hosanna."  He  now  dismounted.  Accompanied  by 
his  disciples  and  the  crowd,  he  went  up  the  hill  of  Zion 
to  the  temple  (see  the  diagram). 

The  traders  in  the  temple. — Here,  in  the  outer 
court,  the  wide  "Court  of  the  Gentiles,"  were  booths 
where  doves  were  sold  for  sacrifice.  There  were  also 
tables,  where  sat  money-changers  ready  to  exchange 
sacred  temple  coins  for  the  Roman  currency  used  by 
the  people. 

The  traders  were  busy,  and  their  business  was  lucra- 
tive. It  was  sacrilege  to  buy  or  sell  in  the  temple,  of 
course;  but  the  traders  paid  well  for  their  "concession," 
and  the  easy-going  Sadducees  (the  high  priests)  were 


ENTERING  JERUSALEM  185 

willing  to  overlook  the  sacrilege.  It  must  have  shocked 
the  feelings  of  people  who  came  long  distances  to  wor- 
ship in  the  temple  to  see  such  desecration  of  the  holy 
place.    Jesus  determined  to  put  an  end  to  it. 

Jesus  drives  them  out. — He  first  seized  a  scourge 
of  knotted  ropes,  and  drove  out  the  traders.  Then  he 
overthrew  the  tables  of  the  money-changers  and  spilled 
their  coins  on  the  ground.  Sternly  he  commanded, 
"Take  these  things  out  of  here!  Stop  making  my 
Father's  house  a  market-place!  It  is  written,  'My 
house  shall  be  called  a  house  of  prayer  for  all  nations'; 
but  you  have  made  it  a  den  of  thieves!" 

The  priests  angry  at  Jesus. — The  traders  fled.  The 
people  applauded  and  gathered  about  Jesus.  But  the 
cliief  priests  and  the  scribes  were  angry  over  the  dis- 
turbance which  he  had  caused.  They  were  now  more 
determined  than  ever  that  Jesus  must  be  put  to  death. 
He  was  leading  the  people  away  from  them,  and  now 
he  had  even  interfered  with  their  management  of  af- 
fairs in  the  temple.  Unless  he  were  stopped  he  would 
soon  put  an  end  to  their  power  and  influence.  The 
wealth  and  the  privileges  which  they  enjoyed  would  be 
taken  away.  And  so,  because  they  were  bad  men  pre- 
tending to  be  good,  because  they  were  selfish  men 
jealous  of  their  position  and  their  privileges,  they  hated 
Jesus  and  shut  their  eyes  to  the  truth. 

The  plot  against  Jesus. — And  so  the  plot  was 
formed  to  get  Jesus  into  their  hands  somehow  or  other, 
by  fair  means  or  foul,  try  him,  have  Pilate  condemn 
him  and  put  him  to  death.  Only  they  must  act  quickly. 
There  was  no  time  to  be  lost.  If  they  waited  until  the 
feast  the  city  would  be  full  of  people;  the  Galileans 
would  all  be  here;  they  were  his  admirers  and  followers, 
and  there  would  be  a  tumult.    So  in  the  next  few  days, 


i86        THE  LIFE  AND  TIMES  OF  JESUS 

and  as  speedily  as  possible,  they  must  take  him  and 
put  him  to  death. 

But  Jesus  did  not, remain  in  the  city  overnight.  That 
evening  he  went  out  to  Bethany  and  stayed  at  the  home 
of  a  friend. 

STUDY  TOPICS 

1.  At  what  time  of  the  year  was  the  Passover  held ?    Why 

was  it  held  in  Jerusalem  ? 

2.  Look  up  Zeehariah  9:9.     Why  did  Jesus  choose  to 

enter  Jerusalem  in  the  way  he  did  ? 

3.  Try  to  form  a  mental  picture  of  the  "triumphal  entry." 

Tell  the  story  as  vividly  as  you  can.     What  does 
"Hosanna"  mean? 

4.  How  did  the  sacrilege  of  buying  and  selling  in  the 

temple  court  come  to  be  allowed  by  the  high  priests  ? 

5.  Explain  the  plot  of  Jesus'  enemies  against  him. 


CHAPTER  XXVIII 
THE  PLOT  AGAINST  JESUS 

Each  day,  from  now  on,  Jesus  spent  in  the  temple; 
each  night  he  remained  outside  the  city,  in  Bethany  or 
on  the  Mount  of  Olives. 

The  scribes  and  high  priests  now  took  their  first  step 
in  carrying  out  the  plot  against  him.  They  tried  to 
"trap  him  in  his  talk." 

ENSNARING   QUESTIONS 

As  he  taught  the  people  in  the  temple  courts  they 
came  to  him  with  their  questions.  They  pretended 
simply  to  be  seeking  for  information.  In  truth,  they 
were  determined,  if  possible,  to  make  him  condemn 
himself  by  some  careless  answer. 

"By  what  authority?" — Their  first  question  was 
asked  the  day  after  Jesus  drove  the  traders  out  of  the 
temple.  They  came  up  to  liim  as  he  was  teaching  and 
asked,  ''Tell  us,  by  what  authority  are  you  doing  these 
things?"  That  seemed  to  them  a  question  which  Jesus 
could  not  answer;  and  if  he  thus  admitted  that  he  had 
no  authority  the  people  would  see  at  once  that  he  was 
deceiving  them. 

But  they  were  mistaken.  It  was  not  so  easy  to  catch 
Jesus  in  their  trap.  At  once  he  answered,  "I  will  also 
ask  you  a  question.  Tell  me  this:  Was  John's  baptism 
from  heaven,  or  from  men?  Did  he  have  authority  to 
baptize,  or  not?" 

They  paused  to  reason  among  themselves  over  this 

187 


i88        THE  LIFE  AND  TIMES  OF  JESUS 

question  and  said,  ''If  we  reply,  'From  heaven,'  he  will 
say,  'Why  didn't  you  believe  him  then?'  But  if  we  say, 
'From  men,' — all  the  people  will  stone  us,  for  they  are 
persuaded  that  John  was  a  prophet."  So  they  answered 
him  that  they  could  not  tell  whether  John's  baptism 
was  from  heaven  or  not. 

Then  said  Jesus  to  them,  "Neither  do  I  tell  you  by 
what  authority  I  do  these  things.'' 

Tribute  to  Caesar. — They  saw  that  it  was  no  use 
trying  to  catch  him  in  this  way,  Jesus  was  too  clever 
for  them.  They  thought  he  would  be  an  ignorant 
country  carpenter;  and,  like  many  proud  persons  who 
look  down  on  others,  they  were  woefully  mistaken! 
Instead,  he  was  more  shrewd  and  quick  than  the  smartest 
lawyer  among  them. 

Their  next  step  was  to  send  out  spies— men  who  pre- 
tended to  ask  Jesus  questions  just  for  the  sake  of  learn- 
ing the  truth.  They  said  to  him,  "Master,  we  know 
that  you  are  a  true  teacher.  You  do  not  accept  the 
opinion  of  others,  but  teach  the  way  of  God  in  truth. 
Tell  us,  is  it  lawful  or  not  to  pay  the  tribute  to  Caesar? 
For  some  say,  'Tribute  should  be  given  to  God  only 
and  not  to  a  heathen  emperor.'  " 

Jesus  saw  their  hypocrisy  at  once.  "Show  me  a 
penny — whose  image  and  superscription  is  on  it?"  They 
handed  him  a  denarius  (worth  twenty  cents),  and  on  it 
were  stamped  the  head  and  name  of  the  emperor.  And 
so  they  replied,  "Caesar's  image  and  superscription." 
Jesus  then  answered  them  and  said,  "Render  to  Caesar 
the  things  that  belong  to  Caesar;  and  to  God  the  things 
that  are  God's." 

Failure  of  this  scheme. — They  expected  that  Jesus 
would  say,  "It  is  wrong  to  pay  tribute  to  Rome"— and 
so  they  could  accuse  him  before  Pilate  at  once.    But 


THE  PLOT  AGAINST  JESUS  189 

his  answer  completely  silenced  them.    There  was  noth- 
ing more  to  be  said. 

It  was  quite  evident  that  asking  questions  was  not 
going  to  lead  him  into  their  hands.  Something  more 
must  be  done  than  this.  And  what  they  did  must  be 
done  at  once— every  hour  was  bringing  fresh  bands  of 
pilgrims  to  the  city.  Soon  it  would  be  too  late;  they 
would  not  dare  to  seize  him  during  the  feast.  Never- 
theless, they  hardly  knew  what  to  do— for  they  dared 
not  take  him  openly.  The  people  already  in  Jerusalem 
would  cause  a  riot.  Their  plot  really  looked  as  if  it 
would  fail. 

JUDAS'   TREACHERY 

And  then  came  the  offer  of  Judas!  Just  as  the  plot- 
ters were  at  their  wits'  end,  provoked  to  fury  by  Jesus' 
cleverness  in  avoiding  their  traps,  came  the  ofTer  of  one 
of  his  own  disciples  to  betray  him  into  their  hands. 
This  seemed  to  them  the  greatest  piece  of  luck  in  the 
world! 

The  career  of  Judas. — Judas  had  been  one  of  the 
trusted,  intimate  disciples  of  Jesus.  He  was  not  so 
close  to  our  Lord  as  Peter  or  James  or  John,  but  he  was 
given  a  responsible  position  as  treasurer  of  the  band. 
He  bought  their  food,  and  gave  alms  to  the  poor  from 
the  common  fund.  He  is  called  Iscariot,  and  some  per- 
sons think  this  means  that  he  was  a  native  of  Kerioth, 
a  village  in  Judaea.  If  so,  he  was  the  only  Judaean 
among  the  Twelve.    All  the  others  were  Galileans. 

His  plans. — But  Judas,  though  Jesus  trusted  him, 
was  not  worthy  to  be  a  disciple.  He  had  followed 
Jesus  from  the  first  in  the  expectation  that  the  King- 
dom of  God  would  be  an  earthly  kingdom.  So  the 
other  disciples  thought  also,  as  we  have  seen.    But  the 


I90        THE  LIFE  AND  TIMES  OF  JESUS 

others  had  no  such  plans  and  schemes  as  Judas  had. 
He  intended  to  be  the  treasurer,  not  only  for  Jesus  and 
the  Twelve,  but  of  the  Kingdom  of  David,  when  Jesus 
had  restored  it  and  was  reigning  in  Jerusalem  on  his 
throne.  Immense  wealth  would  come  into  his  hands 
for  safe  keeping.  He  would  be  Chancellor  of  the  Ex- 
chequer, Secretary  of  the  Treasury,  in  this  new  kingdom. 

His  disappointment.— But  now  it  seemed  that  Jesus 
had  no  intention  of  making  himself  a  king;  he  simply 
refused  to  take  advantage  of  the  great  opportunity  that 
was  his  to  start  a  revolution  against  Rome  and  set  up 
his  kingdom  at  once.  Here  were  followers  by  the  thou- 
sands, ready  to  do  his  bidding  instantly,  seize  the  sword 
and  set  up  a  free  Israel;  yet  Jesus  did  nothing  but  teach. 
Judas  began  to  realize  that  he  had  made  a  mistake. 

He  had  staked  his  whole  future  upon  the  success  of 
Jesus'  kingdom.  Now  he  saw  the  dream  fading  before 
his  eyes — there  was  to  be  no  kingdom  in  Jerusalem,  no 
palace,  no  throne,  no  army,  no  treasury!  Worse  yet, 
Jesus  himself  seemed  to  be  expecting  failure;  he  talked 
about  being  put  to  death  on  the  cross,  cast  out  by  the 
scribes  and  elders  and  priests  at  Jerusalem.  Judas  had 
no  heart  for  such  a  collapse  of  his  ambitions. 

His  temptation.— He  knew  that  the  high  priests 
and  scribes  were  trying  to  get  Jesus  into  their  hands. 
This  was  his  opportunity. 

His  life  seemed  a  failure  so  far.  He  had  staked 
everything  upon  the  Kingdom.  And  he  saw  the  King- 
dom— as  he  had  dreamed  about  it — vanishing  away. 

But  suppose  he  were  to  tell  the  high  priests  some- 
thing about  Jesus? — something  that  they  were  very 
anxious  to  know — something  which  would  enable  them 
to  bring  a  charge  against  him?  Perhaps  they  would  pay 
him  well  or  confer  some  honor  upon  him.     Thus  he 


THE  PLOT  AGAINST  JESUS  191 

would  save  at  least  something  from  the  wreck  of  his 
career. 

Of  course,  Jesus  had  loved  and  trusted  him.  For 
months  Judas  had  lived  in  his  presence,  day  in,  day  out. 
And  to  tell  this  secret  which  the  high  priests  wanted  to 
know  would  be  treachery  to  his  Master.  So  Judas' 
conscience  told  him.  But  yet — somehow  or  other,  the 
priests  were  sure  to  get  hold  of  Jesus,  since  the  Master 
expected  to  die.  And  he  might  as  well  be  the  one  to 
profit  by  the  transaction.  In  this  way  the  temptation 
came  to  him. 

"Yes,"  he  said  to  himself  at  last,  "I  will  do  it." 

His  agreement  with  the  priests. — So  he  went  to  the 
priests  and  said,  "What  are  you  willing  to  give  me,  if 
I  deliver  him  unto  you?"  A  bargain  was  quickly 
made.  The  priests  and  scribes  were  prepared  to  pay 
a  large  amount  to  make  sure  of  Jesus'  arrest,  providing 
it  could  be  made  quickly  and  without  the  knowledge  of 
the  people.  So  they  weighed  out  thirty  pieces  of  silver.^ 
In  return,  Judas  told  the  secret  and  promised  to  turn 
over  Jesus  to  them. 

The  secret  was  this:  Jesus  looked  upon  himself  as 
the  Messiah,  the  Son  of  God.  The  priests  might  have 
guessed  that  this  was  what  Jesus  thought  from  the 
manner  of  his  entry  into  Jerusalem.  But  Jesus  had  not 
said  in  so  many  words,  "I  am  the  Messiah."  And  they 
supposed  that  the  shouts  and  cries  of  the  Galileans  had 
been  merely  an  outburst  of  momentary  enthusiasm, 
without  any  great  importance.  But  if  Jesus  really 
claimed  that  he  himself  was  the  coming  Messiah,  then 
they  already  had  him  in  their  power!  For  they  could 
make  this  the  charge  against  him  a,nd  secure  his  con- 

'Thirty  shekels  is  only  I22.SO  in  our  money;  but  this  amount  was  at  that  time 
the  equivalent  of  a  laborer's  wages  fo-  four  months,  and  was  therefore  worth  many 
times  its  value  to-day. 


192        THE  LIFE  AND  TIMES  OF  JESUS 

demnation.  And  since  Judas  was  a  member  of  the 
Twelve,  he  could  easily  tell  them  where  Jesus  was  at 
any  time  of  the  day  or  night— they  could  now  arrest 
him  quietly,  without  any  danger  of  a  riot. 

From  that  time  on  Judas  sought  a  convenient  op- 
portunity for  delivering  Jesus  over  to  the  priests.  He 
had  sold  his  Master  for  thirty  pieces  of  silver;  and  into 
the  bargain  he  had  sold  himself,  his  honor,  his  con- 
science, his  very  soul!  The  world  still  looks  upon  him 
as  the  most  cowardly  traitor  who  ever  lived,  and  his 
name  is  a  byword  for  treachery. 

STUDY  TOPICS 

1 .  Where  did  Jesus  stay  each  night  from  now  on  ?    Why  ? 

But  where  was  he  in  the  daytime? 

2.  What  was  the  first  question  of  the  scribes  and  priests, 

after  Jesus   drove   out   the   traders?     Give   Jesus' 
answer. 

3.  Why  was  Jesus  asked  to  decide  whether  tribute  should 

be  paid  to  the  Roman  government?     How  did  he 
decide  the  question? 

4.  Describe  the  result  of  the  scribes'  effort  to  "ensnare 

Jesus  in  his  words." 

5.  Describe  the  character  and  career  of  Judas  as  given  in 

this  chapter.     Why  was  he  tempted  to  betray  his 
Master? 

6.  How  did  Judas  agree  to  betray  Jesus?    What  was  the 

secret  he  told  the  high  priests? 

7 .  How  much  money  did  Judas  receive  for  his  treachery  ? 

What  did  he  do  when  he  realized  that  he  was  a 
traitor?    See  Matthew  27  :  3-5. 


i 


THE  TEMPLE  IN  THE  TIME   OF  JESUS 


A     Altar 

BG  Beautiful  Gate 


CL   Chamber  of  Lepers 
CN  Chamber  of  Nazirite 

G    Gates 

H 


CO   Chamber  of  Oil 
CW  Chamber  of  Wood 


Holy  of  Holies,  shut  off  by  a  curtaio, 

the  "  Veil." 
Sanctuary,  containing  Altar  of  Incense, 
Table  of  Showbread,  and   Golden 
Candlestick. 
SC  Sanhedrin's  Council  Chamber  (?) 

A  terrace  surrounded  the  temple,  raising 
the  three  inner  courts  above  the  level  of 
the  Court  of  the  Gentiles.  This  is  shown 
here  by  the  close  parallel  lines. 


r.  -. : :  -^ : : :  ■.  •. : : : :  •. :  n 

ROYAL-    PORCt-t    .    .    ..... 

J — :_: — ^^5J \i^\ : l 


CHAPTER  XXIX 
THE  LAST  DAYS  IN  JERUSALEM 

Jesus  came  into  the  city  early  each  day  when  the 
morning  sacrifice  was  offered.  Throngs  of  people  filled 
the  courts  of  the  temple.  After  the  service  they  re- 
mained to  Hsten  to  Jesus. 

JESUS   TEACHING   IN   THE   TEMPLE 

They  were  eager  to  hear  him  and  welcomed  his  mes- 
sage. The  people  were  sincere  and  humble,  and  gave 
freely  of  their  wealth  to  support  the  temple  and  the 
priests.  They  believed  that  the  scribes  were  their  ap- 
pointed teachers,  even  while  the  scribes  made  religion 
too  hard  for  any  but  themselves  to  practice  it. 

Warning  against  the  scribes.— The  greatest  fault  of 
the  nation,  Jesus  saw,  was  the  pride  and  arrogance  of  the 
scribes  and  the  selfishness  and  avarice  of  the  priests. 
They  had  refused  to  listen  to  him,  just  as  they  had 
refused  to  hear  John  the  Baptist.  They  had  prevented 
the  people  from  accepting  the  gospel;  and  so  his  call 
to  repent  and  make  ready  for  the  Kingdom  of  God  had 
not  been  heeded.  A  terrible  judgment  was  sure  to  fall 
upon  the  nation,  more  terrible  than  any  in  the  past. 
The  city  of  Jerusalem,  sooner  or  later,  would  be  de- 
stroyed, and  with  it  the  beautiful  temple  and  its  build- 
ings. For  the  scribes  were  stifling  the  very  souls  of 
men.  If  their  oppression  continued  the  nation  would 
surely  be  destroyed. 

Jesus  solemnly  warned  his  hearers  against  these  false 
teachers. 

193 


194        THE  LIFE  AND  TIMES  OF  JESUS 

"Beware  of  the  scribes,  who  love  to  walk  in  long 
robes,  and  to  be  saluted  in  the  market-places,  and  to 
sit  in  the  chief  seats  in  the  synagogues!  They  de- 
vour widows*  houses,  and  for  a  pretense  make  long 
prayers.  They  bind  upon  men's  shoulders  biu"dens 
hard  to  bear,  but  will  not  lift  a  finger  to  lighten  them. 

"The  outside  of  the  cup  and  platter  they  carefuUy 
cleanse,  while  the  inside  remains  unclean,  full  of 
extortion  and  excess. 

"They  compass  sea  and  land  to  make  one  pros- 
elyte; but  when  they  have  got  him  they  make  him 
two-fold  more  the  child  of  Gehenna  than  themselves. 

"They  shut  men  out  of  the  Kingdom  of  God ;  they 
refuse  to  enter,  themselves,  and  prevent  others  from 
entering." — See  Matthew  23. 

The  widow's  mites. — As  he  sat  there  teaching,  op- 
posite the  temple  treasury,  he  saw  certain  rich  men 
offering  their  gifts.  There  were  trumpet-shaped  tubes 
into  w^hich  the  money  was  dropped,  and  it  slid  down 
into  the  chests  within  the  temple. 

A  poor  widow  came  up  and  dropped  in  two  mites — 
less  than  a  cent  of  our  money — which  was  all  that  she 
had.  Seeing  this,  Jesus  said  to  his  disciples,  *T  tell  you, 
this  poor  widow  has  cast  in  more  than  all  the  others. 
For  they,  out  of  their  wealth,  gave  only  what  they  do 
not  need;  while  she  has  given  all  she  had,  even  her 
whole  li\ing." 

On  the  Mount  of  Olives. — Towards  evening  Jesus 
and  his  disciples  went  out  to  the  Mount  of  Olives,  where 
they  spent  the  night. 

As  they  were  walking  along  the  disciples  pointed  out 
the  magnificence  of  the  temple  and  the  other  buildings, 
the  arcades  about  the  courts,  the  walls  and  stairways,  ' 
and  the  Castle  of  Antonia.    There  were  no  buildings  like 
these  in   Galilee — not  even  in   the   forbidden   city  of 


THE  LAST  DAYS  IN  JERUSALEM         195 

Tiberias.  So  they  said,  "Master,  see  what  wonderful 
stone-work,  and  what  beautiful  buildings  these  are!" 
But  he  only  replied,  "Not  one  of  these  stones  shall  be  left 
upon  another:  every  one  of  these  buildings  shall  be 
destroyed.'" 

Jesus'  heart  was  neavy  with  sorrow  for  his  people; 
terrible  as  was  their  fate,  they  were  surely  bringing  it 
upon  themselves.  When  Jesus  and  his  disciples  reached 
the  Mount  of  OHves  they  looked  back  over  the  city, 
with  its  glorious  temple  shining  in  the  setting  sun.  All 
this  was  to  be  destroyed ! 

Jesus  weeping  over  Jerusalem. — He  himself  was  to 
die.  He  now  knew  this  to  be  certain.  For  the  authori- 
ties had  not  only  rejected  his  teaching ,  they  had  met 
him  with  scorn  and  hatred  when  he  came  to  Jerusalem 
to  present  himself  as  the  Messiah— though  he  was  a 
different  Messiah  than  they  expected,  a  better  Messiah 
than  anyone  had  ever  dreamed  about.  And  now  they 
were  plotting  his  death. 

But  it  was  not  for  himself  that  he  was  sorrowful.  It 
was  for  his  country,  for  Jerusalem,  the  city  of  God, 
for  his  Father's  house,  and  the  people  whom  he  loved 
and  whom  he  yearned  to  save,  but  who  had  refused  to 
hear  him.  His  own  death  was  to  be  the  final  weight 
in  the  balance  which  would  bring  down  the  judgment 
of  destruction  upon  an  unrepentant  nation.  "All  the 
righteous  blood  shed  from  the  foundation  of  the  world, 
from  the  blood  of  Abel"  to  his  own,  was  to  be  "required 
of  this  generation."  If  only  they  had  accepted  him  and 
hearkened  to  his  teaching!  Instead,  they  were  destroy- 
ing themselves. 

As  he  looked  out  over  the  city,  and  thought  of  all  that 
was  then  taking  place  and  was  still  to  take  place  after 
his  death,  he  wept. 


196        THE  LIFE  AND  TIMES  OF  JESUS 

"O  Jerusalem,  Jerusalem,  thou  that  killest  the 
prophets  and  stonest  them  that  are  sent  unto  thee! 
How  oft  would  I  have  gathered  thy  children  together, 
even  as  a  hen  gathers  her  chickens  under  her  wings, 
and  you  would  not!  Behold,  your  house  is  left  xmto 
you  desolate. — If  you  had  but  known,  in  this  your 
day,  the  things  that  belong  imto  peace!  But  now 
they  are  hid  from  your  eyes." — Lvke  13:34-35; 
19:  42. 

IN   THE  UPPER  ROOM 

It  was  now  the  day  before  the  Passover.  The  dis- 
ciples wished  to  know  where  Jesus  would  keep  the 
feast.  They  needed  a  room  where  they  could  gather 
and  eat  the  supper  which  all  Jews  kept  as  a  memorial 
of  the  Deliverance  from  Egypt.  A  lamb  must  be 
bought  and  arrangements  made  for  roasting  it.  Un- 
leavened bread  and  bitter  herbs  and  wine  must  be  pur- 
chased at  one  of  the  shops. 

So  they  came  to  Jesus  and  asked  him  where  they 
should  make  ready.  He  directed  them  to  the  house  of  a 
friend  in  Jerusalem  who  had  an  upper  room  which  he 
would  let  them  use.  Then  Peter  and  John  went  into 
the  city  and  made  ready. 

And  here,  since  the  Passover  began  that  evening, 
Jesus  and  the  Twelve  gathered  to  eat  their  supper  and 
observe  the  feast. 

At  the  supper. — As  they  sat  down  Jesus  said  to 
them,  "I  have  greatly  desired  to  eat  the  Passover  with 
you  before  I  suffer.  For  I  say  unto  you,  I  will  never 
eat  it  again  until  I  eat  it  with  you  in  the  Kingdom  of 
God." 

Jesus'  thoughts  were  still  on  the  future.  He  knew 
that  the  hour  was  at  hand  when  he  should  be  seized  and 
put  to  death.    "The  Son  of  Man  goes,"  he  said,  "as  it  is 


THE  LAST  DAYS  IN  JERUSALEM         197 

written  of  him:  but  woe  to  the  one  by  whom  the  Son  of 
Man  is  betrayed!" 

These  words  gave  a  shock  to  the  disciples — most  of 
all  to  Judas:  for  he  had  not  the  slightest  idea  that  Jesus 
knew  of  his  treachery.  They  began  to  ask  Jesus  who  it 
was  who  should  betray  him,  saying,  one  by  one,  "Is  it 
I?"  And  he  repUed,  'Tt  is  one  of  the  Twelve,  lying 
here  at  the  table  with  me." 

Confused  and  embarrassed,  Judas  got  up  and  went 
out.  Then  Peter  said,  "Master,  I  will  never  desert 
you.  I  am  ready  to  go  to  prison  and  to  death  with  you 
if  necessary."  But  Jesus  replied,  "Peter,  Satan  is  going 
to  sift  you  like  wheat.  Before  the  cock  crows,  to- 
morrow morning,  you  will  deny  that  you  ever  knew 
me!  You  will  all  desert  me,  just  as  it  is  said,  T  will 
smite  the  shepherd,  and  the  sheep  shall  be  scattered 
abroad.'  The  prophecy  is  about  to  be  fulfilled,  'He 
was  reckoned  with  the  transgressors.'  " 
'  But  Peter  replied,  "Though  everyone  else  deserts 
you,  I  will  not." 

Why  Jesus  was  to  die. — The  disciples  could  not 
understand  why  Jesus  was  so  sad,  and  why  he  kept 
referring  to  the  prophecies,  which  he  said  were  about 
to  be  fulfilled.  Even  though  Judas  was  plotting  to 
betray  him,  what  real  harm  could  Judas  do?  There 
was  still  plenty  of  time  to  get  away  and  start  for  home. 
They  had  their  swords.^  Eleven  men  armed  with  swords 
could  easily  get  out  of  Jerusalem.  It  was  Ught  enough 
in  the  streets  to  see,  with  the  bright  moon  shining;  and 
the  priests  would  hardly  dare  to  attack  them  and  so 
rouse  the  Roman  garrison. 

But  Jesus  would  not  listen  to  such  a  plan.     He  re- 


'These  weie  the  long  knives  used  by  farmers  and  fishermen. 


198        THE  LIFE  AND  TIMES  OF  JESUS 

fused  to  flee  like  a  coward.  If  it  was  necessary  for  him 
to  die,  he  would  die  bravely  for  the  truth.  His  life  was 
still  in  God's  hands,  just  as  it  had  always  been.  And  if 
it  was  the  will  of  his  Father  that  he  should  now  lay 
down  his  life — and  the  prophecies  in  the  Bible  seemed 
to  make  this  clear — then  he  was  fully  prepared  to  lay 
it  down.  He  had  never  set  his  own  safety  above  the 
will  of  God.    He  "pleased  not  himself." 

If  now  he  must  really  die,  his  death  would  surely  be 
for  the  salvation  of  his  people.  For  God  can  use  a  man's 
death  as  well  as  his  life  in  working  out  His  high  purposes. 
There  was  something  mysterious  about  the  death  of 
the  Messiah.  The  Suffering  Servant  of  the  Lord,  in  the 
prophecy  of  Isaiah,  had  to  lay  down  his  life  in  order  to 
take  away  the  sins  of  men. 

All  afternoon,  the  Passover  sacrifices  had  been  offered 
in  the  temple  for  the  sins  of  the  people.  So,  too,  must 
he  now  offer  himself  as  a  sacrifice  for  their  sins.  Even 
while  they  rejected  and  crucified  him  he  would  be  bear- 
ing their  sins  and  making  atonement  for  them. 

The  disciples  could  not  understand  this.  They  vaguely 
felt  that  somehow  things  must  turn  out  differently  than 
Jesus  expected.  They  still  clung  to  the  idea  of  a  king- 
dom which  should  be  set  up  in  Jerusalem,  an  earthl}^ 
kingdom,  with  Jesus  as  king.  Why,  then,  should  he 
be  thinking  of  death  if  his  kingdom  was  about  to  be 
established?  Dying  was  the  very  last  thing  in  the 
world  they  expected  of  their  Messiah. 

The  Breaking  of  the  Bread. — 

"And  as  they  were  eating,  he  took  a  loaf  of  bread; 
and  when  he  had  blessed  it,  he  broke  it  and  gave  it 
to  them  and  said,  'Take  this.  It  is  my  body,  which 
is  broken  for  you.'    And  he  took  a  cup  of  wine ;  and 


THE  LAST  DAYS  IN  JERUSALEM         199 

when  he  had  given  thanks,  he  gave  it  to  them  and 
said,  'Drink  of  it,  all  of  you.  This  is  my  blood  of  the 
covenant,  which  is  shed  for  you  and  for  many  for 
the  remission  of  sins.'  " — ^Mark  14:  22-24;  Luke  22: 
19-20;  Matthew  26:  26-28. 

It  was  clear  to  them  at  last.  Jesus'  mind  was  fully 
made  up;  it  was  useless  to  try  to  dissuade  him.  He  was 
to  die,  and  in  some  mysterious  way  his  death  was  to  be 
''for  the  remission  of  sins." 

By  giving  them  this  bread  and  wine  he  had  bound 
them  together,  and  to  himself,  in  a  solemn  covenant. 
They  were  compelled  now  to  go  with  him  wherever  he 
went.  They  had  not  chosen  him,  but  he  had  chosen 
them;  and  they  were  sharers,  by  this  bond,  in  his  very 
life,  his  body  and  his  blood. 

It  was  clear  to  them  now  that  whatever  took  place 
Jesus  knew  perfectly  well  what  he  was  doing.  If  he 
died  it  was  not  because  he  could  not  help  himself,  but 
because  of  his  own  free  will  he  was  laying  down  his  life 
for  others.  For  a  long  time  they  had  expected  that 
Jesus  would  become  a  king— their  kind  of  a  king.  And 
a  king  he  was  now,  indeed,  their  ruler  and  lord.  They 
had  never  so  fully  realized  his  power  before,  or  seen 
such  majesty  as  this.  For  he  had  the  supremesl  power 
in  the  world — not  only  to  command  others,  but  to  lay 
down  his  own  life  for  their  good. 

A  great  silence  fell  over  them.  They  were  now 
sharers  in  a  solemn  sacrament,  they  were  bound  to- 
gether in  a  sacred  covenant;  and  they  were  bound  to 
obey  Jesus  now  no  matter  what  he  commanded  them 
to  do.  They  were  pledged  to  him  for  life  or  death. 
They  had  given  allegiance  to  their  king. 

After  a  little  they  sang  a  hymn  and  went  out  to  the 
Mount  of  Olives. 


200        THE  LIFE  AND  TIMES  OF  JESUS 

STUDY  TOPICS 

1.  Do  you  think  the  people  who  heard  Jesus  teaching  in 

the  temple  suspected  that  the  priests  were  plotting 
against  him?  If  they  had,  what  do  you  think  they 
would  have  done?  This  explains  why  the  priests 
were  in  a  great  hurry  and  why  they  kept  their  plot 
a  secret. 

2.  What  was  the  great  fault  of  the  scribes  and  Pharisees? 

Of  the  nation? 

3.  What  did  Jesus  foresee  as  the  fate  of  the  city  of  Jeru- 

salem?   Give  Jesus'  words  as  he  wept  over  the  city. 

4.  Tell  the  story  of  the  Widow's  Mites,  and  give  Jesus' 

words  on  the  occasion. 

5.  Where  did  Jesus  eat  the  Passover  supper  with  his 

disciples  ? 

6.  Tell  the  story  of  the  Last  Supper,  stating  what  Jesus 

did  and  giving  his  own  words  as  far  as  possible. 
Who  were  present?  Give  their  names  from  memory. 
What  is  a  covenant? 

7.  What  were  the  disciples  to  do,  now  that  they  under- 

stood that  Jesus  was  to  die  instead  of  ascending  a 
throne  and  becoming  king  in  Jerusalem  ? 


CHAPTER  XXX 
JESUS  IN  THE  HANDS  OF  THE  PRIESTS 

Crossing  the  little  valley  of  the  Kidron,  Jesus  and 
the  eleven  faithful  disciples  went  up  the  Mount  of 
Olives.  There  was  a  garden  on  the  hillside  called 
Gethsemane.    Into  this  they  entered. 

EST   GETHSEMANE 

Leaving  the  others  near  the  entrance,  Jesus  took  with 
him  Peter  and  James  and  John  and  went  farther  into 
the  garden.  Peter  and  the  two  brothers  began  to  be 
amazed;  they  could  not  realize  where  Jesus  was  taking 
them  at  this  hour.  ''My  soul  is  exceeding  sorrowful," 
he  said,  "even  unto  death.    Stay  here  and  watch." 

Jesus*  agony  of  prayer. —  Going  forward  a  little  way, 
about  a  stone's  throw,  Jesus  fell  down  upon  his  knees 
and  prayed.  And  in  his  agony  great  drops  of  sweat 
rolled  down  like  blood  from  his  face. 

Such  was  the  anguish  of  his  soul  as  he  faced  death. 
He  had  done  no  wrong;  yet  he  was  about  to  suffer  the 
most  horrible  of  deaths.  He  had  given  his  whole  life  to 
serve  and  to  save  his  people  because  he  loved  them. 
And  this  was  the  end^ — to  be  rejected  and  crucified. 
For  he  knew  full  well  what  the  priests  and  elders  would 
do  with  him  once  they  had  him  in  their  power.  "Father," 
he  cried,  "all  things  are  possible  with  Thee.  If  Thou  be 
willing,  remove  this  cup  from  me.  Nevertheless,  not 
my  will  but  Thine  be  done." 

The  sleeping  disciples. — After  a  while  he  rose  and 
came  back  to  the  disciples.     They  were  sleeping,  for 


202        THE  LIFE  AND  TIMES  OF  JESUS 

their  ''eyes  were  heavy."  He  roused  them,  and  bade 
them  pray.  "Watch  and  pray,  that  you  enter  not  into 
temptation.  The  spirit  indeed  is  willing,  but  the  flesh 
is  weak."  Ashamed  of  themselves,  they  determined  to 
remain  awake  now  and  watch,  even  as  he  had  told  them. 

Jesus  went  back  and  prayed  once  more.  "O  my 
Father,  if  this  cannot  pass  away,  except  I  drink  it.  Thy 
will  be  done."  Again  he  came  back,  and  again,  as  the 
long  hours  dragged  by,  and  found  them,  even  for  the 
second  and  third  times,  sleeping.  But  instead  of  re- 
buking them  further,  he  said  simply,  "Arise,  let  us  be 
going:  behold,  the  betrayer  is  at  hand." 

The  arrest. — It  was  about  midnight.  The  moon 
which  had  risen  full  that  evening  was  now  high  over- 
head. The  cool  stillness  of  the  garden  was  undisturbed. 
Jesus'  own  agony  of  soul  was  past.  He  had  met  temp- 
tation, he  had  conquered  it.  There  had  come  to  him 
strength  from  heaven  to  endure  his  sufferings.  All  was 
calm  and  peaceful  in  that  lovely  olive  grove,  and  be- 
neath them  lay  the  sleeping  city,  serene  and  beautiful 
in  the  moonlight. 

Suddenly,  through  the  stillness  came  the  sound  of 
many  persons  walking.  They  were  coming  nearer. 
Then  through  the  shadows  came  the  flicker  of  torches, 
and  there  could  be  seen  dark,  silent  figures  approaching. 
Now  a  face  could  be  made  out,  now  the  glint  of  a  sword. 
A  man  was  leading  them.  Evidently  they  were  search- 
ing for  someone,  a  thief,  it  might  be,  or  an  escaped 
prisoner;  possibly,  this  was  itself  a  band  of  thieves — 
though  thieves  would  scarcely  carry  torches,  even  in 
the  garden. 

The  disciples  drew  their  swords  and  waited,  standing 
back  in  the  shadows. 

Nearer  and  nearer  they  came.     Their  leader  appar- 


JESUS  IN  THE  HANDS  OF  THE  PRIESTS    2o.s 

ently  knew  just  where  to  take  them. — Ah,  it  was  Judas! 
He  now  aj^proached  nearer  to  Jesus  as  if  to  greet  him. 
He  had  given  liis  followers  this  sign:  whoever  he  em- 
braced and  kissed  was  the  one  they  were  to  seixc  and 
carry  off.  As  he  drew  near,  Jesus  spoke  to  him  and 
said,  "Judas,  will  you  betray  me  with  a  kiss?"  But 
Judas  did  not  answer.  Some  of  the  men  with  him 
stepped  forward,  ready  to  seize  Jesus. 

The  disciples  saw  what  was  about  to  happen  and 
cried  out,  "Master,  shall  we  strike  with  our  swords?" 
Without  waiting  for  an  answer,  Peter  drove  straight 
for  the  nearest  man — it  happened  to  be  one  of  the  high 
priest's  slaves.  But  his  stroke  missed;  instead  of  be- 
heading the  man,  he  merely  struck  off  his  ear.  Then 
Jesus  said  to  Peter,  "Put  up  your  sword.  All  those 
who  take  the  sword  perish  by  the  sword." 

What  could  they  do?  Jesus  himself  forbade  them  to 
fight.  He  was  actually  giving  himself  up  to  Judas  and 
his  band!  There  was  nothing  to  do  but  flee  for  their  lives. 
All — even  Peter  and  John— now  forsook  him  and  fled. 

JESUS   A   PRISONER 

Jesus  said  to  his  captors,  "Why  have  you  come  out, 
as  against  a  robber,  with  swords  and  clubs?  When  I  sat 
daily  in  the  temple,  teaching,  you  did  not  stretch  forth 
your  hands  to  take  me !  But  this  is  your  hour,  and  the 
power  of  darkness." 

Jesus  led  before  the  high  priest. — They  led  him  to 
the  high  priest's  house— it  was  in  the  southwest  corner 
of  the  city,  high  on  the  western  hill  (see  the  map  of 
Jerusalem) . 

Peter  followed  afar  off.  He  had  thrown  away  his 
sword,  but  came  back  to  see  what  was  done  with  Jesus. 
He  had  promised  to  go  with  Jesus  to  prison  and  death, 


204        THE  LIFE  AND  TIMES  OF  JESUS 

he  was  still  bound  to  his  Lord  by  the  sacrament  of  the 
supper.  At  the  critical  moment  he  had  lost  his  nerve 
and  fled.  He  was  now  ashamed  of  his  loss  of  courage. 
He  could  not  leave  his  Master  and  go  home,  or  go  any- 
where else — there  was  nowhere  else  for  him  to  go.  So 
he  followed  at  a  distance. 

Up  in  the  house,  Judas  and  the  slaves  handed  over 
Jesus  to  the  priests  and  scribes  assembled  there.  While 
they  kept  him  bound,  the  slaves  taunted  and  mocked 
him.  They  blindfolded  him  and  struck  him  and  said 
to  him,  "Prophesy,  you  prophet:  tell  who  it  was  that 
struck  you  then!" 

Peter's  denial. — Down  in  the  court  Peter  stood  be- 
side the  brazier  of  coals  which  had  been  lighted,  warm- 
ing himself.  One  of  the  women  servants,  seeing  him, 
said,  "This  fellow  was  also  with  them."  Fearing  he  too 
might  be  seized,  Peter  denied  it — "Woman,  I  don't  even 
know  him."  A  little  while  after  this  another  made  the 
same  remark,  and  again  he  denied.  An  hour  or  so  later, 
as  they  were  standing  there,  one  of  the  men  said,  "This 
fellow  certainly  was  with  him!  His  speech  betrays  him 
— he  is  a  Galilean!" 

Peter  was  thoroughly  alarmed.  There  was  no  way 
out  of  the  court  except  through  the  door,  and  that  was 
well  barred  and  guarded.  So  he  denied  even  this: 
"Man,  I  don't  know  what  you're  talking  about."  Just 
then  the  cock  crew.  Peter  remembered  what  Jesus  had 
said,  "Before  cock-crowing,  you  will  deny  that  you  ever 
knew  me."  Looking  up  to  the  gallery  where  Jesus 
stood,  with  his  hands  bound  behind  him  and  the  brutal 
slaves  standing  around  him,  Peter  saw  Jesus  look  down 
at  him. 

It  was  more  than  Peter  could  bear.  He  was  a  coward ; 
he  had  fled  in  fear  and  left  Jesus;  he  had  even  denied 


JESUS  IN  THE  HANDS  OF  THE  PRIESTS    205 

that  he  knew  him.  And  yet  he  knew  that  Jesus  loved 
him;  and,  in  his  weak  way,  he  loved  Jesus,  and  was 
ashamed  of  his  disloyalty.  He  made  his  way  out,  some- 
how or  other  got  past  the  door,  and  went  into  the  street. 
Here  he  broke  down  and  cried  bitterly. 

JESUS   CONDEMNED 

The  "trial"  of  Jesus  before  the  priests  was  a  farce. 
He  was  allowed  no  witnesses.  There  was  no  jury.  The 
time  was  dead  of  night.  The  "trial"  followed  imme- 
diately after  his  arrest.  He  was  condemned  within  a 
few  minutes  of  the  first  hearing  of  the  charge.  And  the 
court  was  not  the  regular  Sanhedrin  court,  but  only  a 
self-appointed  group  of  the  enemies  of  the  accused.  All 
this  was  contrary  to  the  Jewish  law.  And  yet  the  very 
ones  who  did  it  were  the  scribes  and  priests,  the  teachers 
and  upholders  of  the  Law.  In  their  anxiety  to  get  rid 
of  Jesus  at  once,  they  utterly  disregarded  all  law  and 
justice. 

The  examination. — After  questioning  Jesus  for  some 
time  and  receiving  no  answer,  they  tried  to  get  wit- 
nesses who  would  say  that  he  had  threatened  to  de- 
stroy the  temple;  but  the  "witnesses"  did  not  agree. 
They  then  tried  once  more  to  make  him  convict  him- 
self, but  he  said  nothing. 

Then  they  determined  to  use  the  testimony  of  Judas 
— "He  claims  to  be  the  Messiah."  And  so  they  asked 
him,  "Are  you  the  Messiah?"  To  this  he  replied,  "If 
I  tell  you,  you  will  not  believe;  and  if  I  ask  you,  you 
will  not  answer.  But  from  henceforth  the  Son  of  Man 
shall  be  seated  at  the  right  hand  of  the  Power  of  God." 

The  high  priest's  question. — This  was  what  they 
wanted!  With  a  solemn  oath,  the  high  priest  adjured 
him,  "Tell  us,  are  you  then  the  Messiah,  the  Son  of  the 


2o6        THE  LIFE  AND  TIMES  OF  JESUS 

Blessed  One?"  Jesus  replied,  ''You  have  said  it.  That 
is  who  I  am."  They  rose  up  in  excitement,  shouting, 
"We  have  no  need  of  witnesses! — He  has  condemned 
himself! — You  have  heard  the  blasphemy. — Is  he  guilty? 
— Yes,  and  worthy  of  death!" 

Now  they  could  go  to  Pilate  with  a  charge  which 
would  secure  his  crucifixion. 

Jesus'  innocence. — Did  any  of  them  pause  to  ask 
if  Jesus'  claim  could  possibly  be  true?  Did  they  think 
for  a  moment  that,  after  all,  their  idea  of  the  Messiah 
might  be  false,  and  Jesus'  idea  the  true  one?  Did  it 
once  occur  to  them  that  Jesus  might  be  innocent?  Or 
that  their  judgment  might  be  mistaken?  Or  that  their 
whole  view  of  religion,  and  of  the  Law,  and  of  God, 
might  be  false,  and  Jesus  be  in  the  right? 

No. — In  their  folly  they  undertook  to  put  to  death 
the  Prince  of  Life,  as  one  of  the  apostles  afterwards  said, 
and  while  unjustly  condemning  Jesus  they  were  also 
condemning  themselves.  Instead  of  saving  themselves 
and  their  city,  their  wealth,  and  their  privileges,  they 
only  brought  on  destruction  the  more  swiftly.  Forty 
years  after  Jesus'  death  Jerusalem  was  destroyed,  the 
temple  sacked,  and  its  golden  treasures  carried  off  to 
Rome.  The  judgment  came,  and  the  Kingdom  of  God. 
They  had  their  share  in  the  one,  but  not  in  the  other. 
And  to  this  day  the  world  remembers  the  condemnation 
of  Jesus  as  its  darkest  hour  of  oppression. 

STUDY  TOPICS 

1.  Where  was  the  Garden  of  Gethsemane? 

2.  Tell  what  Jesus  did  after  leaving  the  upper  room.    ' 

3.  What  was  Jesus'  prayer  in  the  garden? 

4.  What  might  Jesus  have  done  had  he  been  afraid  to 

die?    Why  did  he  refuse  to  escape? 


JESUS  IN  THE  HANDS  OF  THE  PRIESTS    207 

5.  Give  the  story  of  the  arrest  of  Jesus  by  Judas  and  his 

band. 

6.  Where  was  Jesus  led  by  his  captors ;     Tell  what  took 

place  there. 

7.  Tell  what  Peter  did  and  said  as  he  stood  in  the  court- 

yard.   Where  were  the  other  disciples  at  the  time? 


CHAPTER  XXXI 

THE  CRUCIFIXION 

Early  the  next  morning  the  priests  and  scribes  led 
Jesus  to  Pilate.  For  they  themselves  had  no  authority 
to  put  him  to  death.  The  Romans  forbade  even  the 
Sanhedrin,  the  highest  Jewish  court,  to  carry  out  the 
sentence  of  death — and  Jesus'  "judges"  in  the  high 
priest's  house  were  by  no  means  the  Sanhedrin.  All 
such  cases  had  to  be  tried  again  before  a  Roman  officer. 

BEFORE   PILATE 

Pilate  was  very  anxious  to  keep  peace  and  order  in 
Jerusalem  during  the  feast.  The  Jews,  he  thought,  were 
an  unruly  race.  Riots  were  frequent  during  the  festi- 
vals, when  great  crowds  of  pilgrims  filled  the  capital. 
He  kept  his  soldiers  ready  at  a  moment's  notice  to  march 
down  into  the  city  and  restore  order. 

The  chief  priests  and  scribes  knew  that  if  they  rep- 
resented Jesus  as  a  dangerous  agitator,  one  who  claimed 
to  be  the  Messiah,  that  is,  the  king  of  Jerusalem,  then 
Pilate  would  be  more  willing  to  put  him  to  death. — 
And  if  Pilate  hesitated  they  could  threaten  to  start 
a  riot  during  the  Passover.  That  would  be  enough  to 
persuade  him! 

The  charge  against  Jesus. — So  they  led  Jesus  to  the 
Prstorium,  which  was  in  the  old  palace  of  Herod  in 
the  northwest  corner  of  the  Old  City  (see  the  map). 
The  chief  priests  did  not  go  in,  since  they  were  strictly 
observing  the  Passover,  and    to  go  into   the  Gentile 

ao8 


THE  CRUCIFIXION  209 

court-room  would  be  defiling.  So  Pilate  came  out  to 
them,  and  they  stated  the  charge  against  Jesus:  "We 
found  this  man  (i)  perverting  the  nation,  forbidding  to 
give  tribute  to  Caesar;  and  (2)  saying  that  he  himself 
has  been  anointed  king." 

This  charge,  in  both  clauses,  was  a  direct  falsehood. 
Jesus  did  not  forbid  the  payment  of  tribute  (see  Chap- 
ter 28).  Nor  did  he  claim  to  be  the  king  of  the  Jews: 
his  idea  of  the  Messiah  was  spiritual,  just  as  his  idea  of 
the  Kingdom  of  God  was  spiritual. 

Pilate*s  examination. — Pilate  turned  to  Jesus.  "Are 
you  king  of  the  Jews?"  He  asked  the  question  almost 
in  derision — the  prisoner  before  him  looked  anything 
but  like  a  king,  with  no  crown,  no  scepter,  no  purple 
robes  of  royalty:  the  clothes  he  wore  were  torn  and 
dirty  from  the  abuse  of  the  high  priest's  slaves  the 
night  before. 

Jesus  had  kept  silence  while  the  high  priests,  amid  the 
general  clamor,  stated  the  accusation.  Now,  in  re- 
sponse to  Pilate's  question,  "Are  you  a  king?"  he  only 
replied,  "So  you  say." 

The  answer  was  non-committal.  Pilate  knew  no  more 
than  before.  Perhaps  he  thought  the  prisoner  was 
overcome  with  fright,  and  afraid  to  speak  in  his  own 
defense;  so  he  led  Jesus  inside  and  questioned  him  pri- 
vately. But  Jesus,  of  course,  was  not  afraid.  He  knew 
himself  to  be  a  "king" — but  a  king  in  no  sense  that 
Pilate  could  understand.  So  he  had  answered  in  this 
unusual  manner. 

Jesus  had  no  trial. — To  speak  of  the  "trial"  before 
Pilate  is  just  as  much  a  mistake  as  to  call  the  night 
session  in  the  high  priest's  house  a  trial.  The  action  of 
the  scribes  and  priests  was  only  a  plot,  thinly  disguised. 
The  examination  by  Pilate  was  not  a  trial — for  Jesus 


2IO        THE  LIFE  AND  TIMES  OF  JESUS 

had  no  witnesses,  and  the  governor  was  in  a  hurry  and 
anxious  to  dismiss  the  case.  Anything  but  the  trial  of 
a  popular  leader  on  the  very  morning  of  the  Passover! 
"These  crazy  priests!"  he  said  to  himself,  ''to  be  bring- 
ing a  mob  here  at  such  a  time  as  this!" 

Yet  he  knew  that  Jesus  was  not  guilty.  So  he  brought 
him  back  to  the  porch  outside  the  palace  and  said  to 
the  chief  priests  and  the  multitude,  *T  find  no  fault  in 
this  man."  "You're  no  friend  of  Caesar,"  the  priests 
shouted  back,  "if  you  let  this  man  go.  He  stirs  up  the 
people  continually,  teaching  throughout  the  nation, 
beginning  in  GaUlee,  and  now  coming  here." 

Led  before  Herod. — When  Pilate  heard  Galilee  men- 
tioned he  thought  at  once  of  a  plan.  He  really  did  not 
know  what  to  do  with  Jesus,  but  wanted  to  get  rid  of 
him.  If  he  was  a  Galilean  he  could  say  that  he  had  no 
jurisdiction  in  the  case  and  hand  him  over  to  Herod 
Antipas.  Herod  was  even  then  in  Jerusalem,  having 
come  up  for  the  feast,  and  to  Herod  Jesus  was  sent. 
Pilate  thought  that  this  was  the  solution  of  his  diffi- 
culty. 

Herod  had  wanted  for  a  long  time  to  see  Jesus,  ex- 
pecting to  witness  some  miracle  done  by  him.  When 
Jesus  was  led  before  him  the  tetrarch  asked  him  many 
questions.  The  scribes  and  elders  grew  vehement  in 
their  accusations,  but  Jesus  answered  them  never  a 
word.  At  last  Herod  and  his  soldiers  began  to  mock 
Jesus,  put  a  purple  robe  on  him,  and  sent  him  back  to 
Pilate. 

Before  Pilate  once  more. — When  Pilate  saw  the 
rabble  returning  with  the  angry  priests  and  their  pris- 
oner, he  knew  that  he  would  have  to  act  quickly  to 
save  the  man  and  prevent  a  tumult.  He  went  out  and 
spoke  to  them.     "You  have  brought  me  this  man  as 


THE  CRUCIFIXION  211 

one  who  misguides  the  people,"  he  said-  "But,  after 
examining  him  in  your  presence,  I  find  no  fault  in  him 
touching  those  things  you  have  charged  against  him. 
Nor  has  Herod  found  him  guilty,  for  he  has  sent  him 
back  to  me.  It  is  evident  that  nothing  worthy  of  death 
has  been  done  by  the  prisoner." 

Then  Pilate  continued:  "It  is  the  custom  to  release  a 
prisoner  at  the  Passover,  whoever  you  ask.  Whom  shall 
I  release,  this  man  or  Barabbas?" — Barabbas  was  a 
Zealot  who  had  started  an  insurrection  in  the  city  and 
had  committed  murder. — They  cried  out,  "Release 
Barabbas!"  "What  then  shall  I  do  with  this  man, 
who  is  called  'King  of  the  Jews'?"  "Crucify  him,  crucify 
him!"  they  shouted. 

Jesus  condemned. — And  so  Pilate,  afraid  to  be  un- 
popular or  to  gain  the  enmity  of  the  chief  priests,  and 
wishing  to  avoid  a  tumult  at  the  Passover,  gave  in  to 
them.  He  released  Barabbas,  and  sentenced  Jesus  to 
death.  And  at  the  same  time  he  ordered  two  thieves 
crucified  with  him. 

THE   DEATH   ON   THE   CROSS 

Crucifixion  was  one  of  the  most  terrible  means  of 
death  ever  inflicted  upon  criminals. 

The  custom  of  crucifixion. — It  was  not  a  Jewish 
penalty,  but  was  practiced  by  the  Romans.  Yet  so 
horrible  was  it  that  no  Roman  citizen  was  ever  given 
this  punishment.  Only  slaves  were  crucified  in  Italy. 
But  in  the  provinces,  as  in  Syria,  where  the  people  were 
ruled  by  Roman  military  governors,  crucifixion  was  the 
punishment  for  brigands,  murderers,  and  insurrection- 
ists (that  is,  rebels  against  the  Roman  government). 
The  two  thieves  were  crucified  as  brigands;  Jesus  was 
crucified  as  an  insurrectionist. 


212        THE  LIFE  AND  TIMES  OF  JESUS 

Golgotha. — The  priests,  with  a  small  company  of 
soldiers,  led  Jesus  and  the  thieves  outside  the  city  to  a 
place  called  Golgotha,  "The  Skull."  We  do  not  know 
where  this  was,  but  it  was  near  Jerusalem.  Here  they 
stripped  the  three  victims  and  nailed  them  to  their 
crosses.  As  they  did  so  they  offered  them  wine  mingled 
with  myrrh  in  order  to  deaden  their  pain.  But  Jesus 
refused  to  drink  it — he  would  die  with  his  mind  un- 
clouded by  any  drug. 

At  the  top  of  his  cross  was  placed  an  inscription 
which  said, 


THIS  IS  THE  KING  OF  THE  JEWS 


The  crowd  standing  by  began  to  mock  him,  saying, 
"  'The  King  of  the  Jews'? — Come  down  from  the  cross, 
then,  and  save  yourself  first  of  all!"  Others  said,  "Aha! 
you  temple-destroyer,  on  the  cross  is  where  you  belong!" 
— "He  saved  others,  but  he  cannot  save  himself!" — 
"Let  this  Messiah  come  down  from  the  cross  and  we  will 
believe  him!"  Even  one  of  the  thieves,  hanging  nearby, 
mocked  and  cursed  him.  Jesus  heard  what  they  said, 
but  he  only  murmured—the  gentlest  words  ever  uttered 
—"Father,  forgive  them,  for  they  know  not  what  they 
do." 

Then  the  other  thief  rebuked  the  one  who  cursed 
Jesus.  "Isn't  there  any  fear  of  God  left  in  you,  even 
when  you're  in  the  same  place  as  this  man?  We  deserve 
what  we're  getting.  But  he  doesn't."  Then  turning  his 
head  toward  our  Lord  he  said,  "Jesus,  remember  me 
when  you  come  into  your  kingdom!"  And  the  Lord 
replied,  "Yes;  to-day  you  will  be  with  me  in  Paradise." 

Jesus  dies. — After  a  while  the  priests  went  home, 
and  the  crowd  began  to  disperse.    The  soldiers  on  guard 


THE  CRUCIFIXION  213 

were  throwing  dice  for  the  clothes  of  the  three  victims. 
Some  of  Jesus'  disciples  had  come  near,  and  with  them 
came  Mary,  his  mother,  and  two  or  three  other  women 
from  Gahlee. 

As  he  hung  there,  repeating  over  to  himself  some  of 
the  Psalms,  Jesus  grew  thirsty  and  asked  for  a  drink. 
One  of  the  soldiers,  feeling  pity  for  him,  took  a  reed, 
put  a  sponge  on  one  end,  dipped  this  in  vinegar  and 
moistened  Jesus'  lips. 

Towards  noon  the  heat  became  intense.  And  then, 
as  if  the  very  skies  would  have  mercy  upon  the  one 
whom  his  people  had  unjustly  cast  out,  the  sun  was 
clouded  over  and  darkness  came  on.  This  lasted  until 
after  Jesus  died,  three  hours  later. 

The  crucified  usually  lingered  for  two  or  three  days 
before  they  died  from  the  heat  and  hunger  and  exhaus- 
tion. But  it  was  evident  that  Jesus'  strength  was  fast 
failing.  He  was  worn  with  fatigue  from  his  months 
of  travel  and  teaching,  and  the  awful  strain  of  the  past 
twenty-four  hours  was  telling  upon  him.  At  last,  about 
three  in  the  afternoon,  he  rallied  for  a  moment,  gave  a 
loud  cry,  and  said,  "Father,  into  thy  hands  I  commend 
my  spirit."— He  was  dead. 

The  centurion  in  command  of  the  guard,  when  he 
saw  how  Jesus  died,  remarked,  "Certainly,  this  was  a 
righteous  man."  He  had  seen  crucifixions  before,  but 
never  had  he  seen  anyone  give  up  his  life  so  nobly,  like 
a  true  hero,  a  Son  of  God. 

THE   TOMB   IN  THE   GARDEN 

There  was  a  man  in  Jerusalem  who  came  from  the 
village  of  Arimathea.  His  name  was  Joseph;  he  was  a 
member  of  the  Sanhedrin  and  very  wealthy.  He  had 
been  looking  for  the  coming  of  the  Kingdom  of  God ;  he 


214        THE  LIFE  AND  TIMES  OF  JESUS 

was  a  good  man,  and  secretly  an  admirer  of  Jesus.  Of 
course,  he  had  nothing  to  do  with  the  plot  against  Jesus 
which  the  high  priests  had  formed  and  carried  out. 

Permission  from  Pilate. — He  now  went  boldly  to 
Pilate  and  asked  permission  to  bury  the  body  of  Jesus. 
He  had  a  new  tomb  in  his  garden,  hewn  out  of  stone, 
like  a  shelf  in  the  rock.  Here  he  could  place  Jesus'  body 
until  after  the  Sabbath,  when  the  burial  should  take 
place. 

Pilate  was  surprised  at  his  request,  but  readily  granted 
it.  Then  Joseph  took  down  the  body  from  the  cross, 
wrapped  it  in  a  linen  cloth,  and  placed  it  in  the  tomb. 

A  stone  was  rolled  against  the  opening,  and  Joseph 
went  home  about  the  time  when  the  Sabbath  lamps 
were  being  lighted. 

The  faithful  women  from  Galilee  had  followed  Joseph 
and  had  seen  where  he  placed  the  body  of  Jesus.  All 
day  they  had  stood  near  the  cross — as  near  as  they  dared 
to  come — and  now  they  prepared  to  do  a  last  kind  service 
to  their  Master:  they  got  ready  the  spices  and  oint- 
ments for  his  burial. 

STUDY  TOPICS 

1.  Did  Jesus  have  a  fair  trial,  either  before  the  priests  or 

before  Pilate?    Give  reasons  for  your  answer. 

2.  What  was  Pilate  most  anxious  to  do  when  Jesus  was 

brought  before  him? 

3.  Where  was  the  Praetorium?    What  was  it? 

4.  Tell  what  took  place  when  Jesus  was  led  before  Pilate. 

Why  did  he  send  him  to  Herod  ? 

5.  Who  was  Barabbas?    Why  do  you  suppose  the  priests 

preferred  his  release  to  that  of  Jesus? 

6.  Tell  the  story  of  the  crucifixion. 

7.  Was  Jesus  buried  on  the  day  of  his  death?    Where  was 

his  body  placed  ? 


CHAPTER  XXXII 
THE  RESURRECTION 

Jesus'  body  was  taken  down  from  the  cross  late  in 
the  afternoon  of  Friday.  The  next  day,  Saturday,  was 
the  Sabbath.  The  disciples,  like  all  other  Jews,  rested 
on  this  day.  Where  they  were  we  cannot  tell.  No  doubt 
they  were  in  hiding,  for  fear  of  the  high  priests  and 
scribes  who  had  just  put  their  master  to  death. 

It  was  the  saddest  Sabbath  they  had  ever  known. 
Jesus  was  dead,  their  beloved  teacher;  their  hope  of  the 
Kingdom  of  God  had  been  dashed  to  ruin;  and  their 
own  lives  were  in  danger.  To-morrow  they  would  start 
for  home.  Their  loss  and  disappointment  were  over- 
whelming. 

THE   EMPTY  TOMB 

Early  the  next  morning,  at  dawn,  the  women  went  to 
the  garden  to  prepare  Jesus'  body  for  burial.  They 
brought  with  them  spices  and  ointments  and  linen 
cloth.  For  that  was  the  custom — the  body  was  an- 
ointed and  covered  with  sweet  spices,  and  then  wrapped 
tightly  in  linen.  Where  they  intended  to  bury  Jesus 
we  do  not  know;  probably  it  was  right  in  the  tomb  in 
Joseph's  garden,  where  the  body  now  lay. 

"He  is  not  here;  he  is  risen!" — As  they  went 
along  they  wondered  if  they  would  be  able  to  pry  the 
stone  away  from  the  tomb,  for  it  was  very  heavy.  But 
when  they  got  there,  behold,  it  was  already  rolled  away! 
They  entered  the  little  cavern,  with  its  shelves  cut  in 
the  rock.    But  the  body  of  Jesus  was  not  there!    They 

215 


2i6        THE  LIFE  AND  TIMES  OF  JESUS 

were  greatly  perplexed  and  alarmed,  and  did  not 
know  what  to  make  of  it.  Could  someone  have 
taken  away  the  body—some  friend,  removing  it  else- 
where for  burial?  Or  might  some  enemy  have  stolen  it 
in  the  night? 

As  they  stood  there,  wondering  at  what  had  taken 
place,  they  saw  a  vision.  Two  men  stood  beside  them 
in  dazzling  apparel.  The  women  were  frightened  and 
bowed  their  faces  to  the  earth.  The  men  said  to  them, 
"Why  do  you  look  here  for  one  who  is  living?  He  is  not 
here;  he  is  risen.  Remember  the  words  that  he  said  to 
you,  even  in  Galilee,  'The  Son  of  Man  must  be  crucified, 
and  rise  again.'  Go  now  and  tell  Peter  and  the  other 
disciples  that  he  goes  before  you  into  Galilee.  There 
you  shall  see  him,  even  as  he  said." 

Peter  at  the  tomb. — ^The  women  went  out  with  fear 
and  trembling,  and  returned  to  the  city.  When  they 
arrived  they  told  the  disciples  what  they  had  seen  and 
heard — the  empty  tomb,  the  vision,  the  words  of  the 
two  men.  And  it  seemed  Hke  a  dream  to  the  disciples. 
But  Peter  and  one  of  the  others  rose  up  and  ran  to  the 
tomb.  Looking  in,  they  saw  the  linen  cloths  lying  there, 
which  the  women  had  not  noticed;  but  they  saw  no 
\nsion,  nor  heard  any  words.  So  instead  of  returning  to 
Jerusalem,  they  set  out  at  once  for  Galilee. 

Back  to  Galilee. — The  disciples  were  discouraged 
and  sick  at  heart.  "The  Kingdom  of  God"  now  seemed 
an  idle  fancy — and  the  "rising  from  the  dead"  impos- 
sible. They  had  expected  an  earthly  kingdom:  Jesus' 
crucifixion  was  the  most  terrible  blow  that  kind  of  an 
expectation  could  possibly  receive.  No  wonder  they 
were  now  so  discouraged!  It  seemed  weeks  ago,  instead 
of  a  few  short  days,  when  Jesus  had  come  up  with  them 
to  Jerusalem,  intending  to  keep  the  Passover.     There 


THE  RESURRECTION  217 

was  nothing  to  do  now  but  go  home,  get  out  their  nets, 
and  start  fishing  once  more.  Their  dream  had  vanished. 
It  had  all  been  a  vast  mistake,  and  it  had  ended  in 
dismal  failure.  Jesus  of  Nazareth  was  dead,  and  his 
cause  was  lost. 

ON   THE   WAY   TO   EMMAUS 

And  so,  as  Peter  and  the  others  set  out  for  Galilee, 
two  of  Jesus'  followers  who  lived  at  Emmaus,  just  west 
of  Jerusalem,  set  forth  for  home.  It  was  the  afternoon 
of  that  same  day,  Sunday. 

"And  as  they  walked  along,  they  were  talking 
about  all  that  had  happened.  And  it  came  to  pass 
as  they  talked  with  each  other  and  questioned, 
Jesus  himself  drew  near  and  walked  with  them. 
But  their  eyes  were  holden,  so  that  they  did  not 
recognize  him. 

"He  said  to  them,  'What  are  you  talking  about  so 
earnestly  as  you  walk  along?* 

"They  stopped  and  stood  still,  looking  at  him  with 
sadness  in  their  gaze.  One  of  them,  Cleopas,  an- 
swered and  said  to  him,  'Are  you  only  a  stranger 
in  Jerusalem,  and  do  you  not  know  what  has  taken 
place  there  in  the  last  few  days?' 

"He  asked,  'What  things?' 

"They  replied,  'About  Jesus  of  Nazareth,  who  was 
a  prophet  mighty  in  word  and  deed  before  God  and 
all  the  people;  how  the  chief  priests  and  rulers  de- 
livered him  up  to  death  and  crucified  him.  But  we 
hoped  that  he  was  the  one  who  should  redeem 
Israel.  Yes;  and  besides  all  this,  it  is  now  the  third 
day  since  he  was  cnicified.  Early  this  morning, 
certain  women  v/ho  belonged  to  our  company  went 
to  the  tomb,  and  found  that  his  body  was  not  there. 
Instead,  they  returned,  saying  they  had  seen  a 
vision  of  angels,  who  told  them  that  he  was  still 


2i8        THE  LIFE  AND  TIMES  OF  JESUS 

alive.  Some  of  us  then  went  to  the  tomb,  and  found 
it  empty,  just  as  the  women  had  said;  but  Jesus 
himself  has  not  been  seen.' 

"Then  he  said  to  them,  'O  foolish  men,  and  slow 
to  believe,  after  all  that  the  prophets  have  said! 
Was  it  not  right  for  the  Messiah  to  suffer  these 
things  and  so  to  enter  his  glory?'  Then  beginning 
with  Moses  and  all  the  prophets,  he  explained  to 
them  throughout  the  scriptures  the  references  to 
himself  as  the  Messiah. 

"They  now  drew  near  to  the  village  where  Cleopas 
and  his  friend  lived;  but  Jesus  seemed  to  be  going 
further.  And  so  they  urged  him,  saying,  'Come  in 
and  stay  with  us;  it  is  nearly  evening,  and  the  day 
is  almost  gone.'  So  he  went  in  as  if  to  spend  the 
night  with  them. 

"And  it  came  to  pass,  when  he  had  sat  down  with 
them  at  the  table,  he  took  the  loaf  of  bread  and 
blessed  it.  Then  breaking  it,  he  gave  it  to  them. 
And  lo,  their  eyes  were  opened  and  they  knew  him: 
and  immediately  he  vanished  out  of  their  sight. 
And  they  said  to  each  other,  'Did  not  our  hearts 
bum  witibiin  us  as  he  talked  to  us  on  the  way,  and 
explained  to  us  the  scriptures?' 

"So  they  rose  up  at  that  very  hour  and  returned 
to  Jerusalem.  They  found  the  eleven  gathered  to- 
gether, and  the  others  with  them,  saying,  'The  Master 
has  risen  indeed,  and  has  appeared  to  Simon.'  Then 
they  told  what  had  happened  on  their  way  home,  and 
how  Jesus  was  made  faiown  to  them  in  the  breaking 
of  the  bread." — ^Luke  24:14-35. 

WHAT   BECAME   OF   THE   DISCIPLES? 

Just  as  Cleopas  and  his  friend  returned  to  Jerusalem 
"at  that  very  hour"  and  told  all  that  had  happened,  so 
the  other  disciples  returned,  after  seeing  Jesus  risen 


THE  RESURRECTION  219 

from  the  dead.  Some  saw  him  in  Galilee  and  came 
back.  Others,  like  Mary  of  Magdala,  saw  liim  the 
very  day  the  tomb  was  found  empty.  Only  one  thing 
drew  them  together  again,  and  that  was  their  faith 
that  Jesus  was  still  living,  still  their  Master  and  the 
Messiah. 

Tarrying  in  Jerusalem. — Here  they  remained,  in  the 
upper  room  of  the  house  in  Jerusalem  where  they  had 
eaten  the  Passover  with  Jesus.  From  time  to  time  Jesus 
came  into  their  midst  and  talked  with  them.  At  last  one 
day  he  led  them  out  to  Bethany,  lifted  up  his  hands 
and  blessed  them,  and  vanished  from  their  sight.  A 
cloud  received  him — He  had  ascended  into  heaven;  he 
had  returned  to  his  Father. 

Preaching  the  Gospel. — A  few  days  later,  on 
the  Day  of  Pentecost,  the  disciples  began  to  preach. 
They  were  not  in  Galilee,  but  right  in  Jerusalem,  where 
Jesus  had  been  put  to  death,  and  where  their  own  lives 
were  still  in  danger.  It  was  a  wonderful  change  in  the 
disciples,  and  only  one  thing  could  have  made  them  so 
brave  and  fearless.  It  was  their  faith  in  Jesus,  once 
their  Master  and  Teacher,  now  their  Messiah  and  Lord. 
For  they  had  actually  seen  him  and  been  with  him 
since  his  resurrection  from  the  dead.  They  believed 
that  he  was  now  in  heaven,  seated  at  the  right  hand  of 
God.  Stephen,  the  first  martyr  of  the  Church,  saw  him 
there  in  a  vision  as  he  was  dying.  And  they  expected 
that  Jesus  would  soon  return  to  set  up  the  Kingdom 
of  God  in  Jerusalem.  For  still,  in  spite  of  all  that  Jesus 
had  said,  they  looked  for  an  earthly  kingdom,  with  a 
palace  and  a  throne  in  Jerusalem,  and  armies  and  tribute 
and  courts  of  law.  It  was  a  long  while  before  this  idea 
disappeared  and  the  Christian  Church  began  to  realize 
the  spiritual  truth  of  Jesus'  teaching. 


2  20        THE  LIFE  AND  TIMES  OF  JESUS 

The  growth  of  the  Church. — The  story  of  the  bold 
preaching  of  the  disciples,  of  their  persecution  by  the 
Pharisees  and  priests,  of  the  gradual  rise  and  growth  of 
the  Church  -all  this  is  written  in  the  Acts  of  the  Apos- 
tles, and  in  the  few  other  books  which  have  come  down 
to  us  from  those  long-ago  days.  Peter  and  James  and 
John  were  the  leaders  of  the  Church  in  Jerusalem.  The 
others,  tradition  tells  us,  went  elsewhere  to  preach  the 
gospel.  Judas,  the  traitor,  had  killed  himself  when  he 
realized  what  he  had  done,  and  Matthias  was  chosen 
to  fill  his  place  and  be  one  of  the  Twelve. 

This  long  story  of  the  spread  of  Christianity;  the 
rise  and  growth  of  the  Church;  its  wonderful  history 
through  nearly  nineteen  centuries  down  to  our  own  days 
— this  you  must  read  some  time.  For,  next  to  the  Life 
of  Jesus,  it  is  the  most  wonderful  story  in  the  world. 

JESUS   OUR  MASTER  TO-DAY 

And  all  through  the  history  of  the  Christian  Church 
the  memory  of  Jesus,  the  records  of  his  life  and  teaching 
in  the  gospels,  and  the  sacraments  by  which  his  dis- 
ciples live  in  communion  with  him,  have  been  preserved 
and  treasured.  He  is  still  our  Master  and  Teacher, 
just  as  he  was  the  Teacher  of  his  little  band  of  disciples 
in  GaHlee.  And  still  he  says  to  us,  as  he  said  to  them, 
"Why  do  you  call  me  Master,  unless  you  do  what  I 
say?"  Still  he  says  to  us,  "Blessed  are  the  poor  in 
spirit,  blessed  are  the  pure  in  heart,  blessed  are  the 
peacemakers — for  they  are  the  true  children  of  God  and 
theirs  is  the  Kingdom  of  Heaven." 

The  Savior  of  the  World. — And  not  only  is  he  our 
Master  and  Teacher,  he  is  also  our  Savior  and  Re- 
deemer. By  his  life  and  teachings  he  reveals  to  us  our 
Father  in  heaven,  helps  us  to  know  Him  and  love  Him, 


THE  RESURRECTION  221 

as  His  loyal  and  faithful  children.  Of  Jesus  it  was  truly 
said,  "In  him  was  life;  and  the  life  was  the  light  of 
men"  (John  i:  4).  For  his  life  was  the  life  of  God 
Himself,  lived  among  men,  God  in  man,  ''incarnate." 

And  also,  by  his  perfect  obedience,  even  through 
suffering  and  death,  he  saved  us,  and  all  who  believe 
in  him,  from  sin  and  eternal  death.  He  laid  down  his 
life,  as  he  said,  "a  ransom  for  many";  his  blood  was 
shed  "for  the  remission  of  sins." 

And  by  his  resurrection,  he  "conquered  death  for 
every  man."  In  him,— that  is,  by  receiving  him,  by 
living  in  communion  with  him,  by  accepting  his  help 
or  "grace,"  by  loving  and  obeying  him, — we  are  able 
to  conquer  sin,  overcome  our  faults,  grow  more  like 
him,  and  fit  for  God's  Kingdom  and  eternal  life. 

The  secret  of  true  happiness. — One  day,  thirty 
years  after  the  death  of  Jesus,  a  man  lay  chained  in  a 
dingy  prison  in  the  far-away  city  of  Rome.  He  was 
there,  not  because  he  had  committed  any  crime,  but 
because,  like  his  Master,  he  had  offended  the  Jewish 
high  priests.    His  name  was  Paul. 

He  is  writing  a  letter  to  some  Christians  in  distant 
Philippi,  in  Macedonia,  to  thank  them  for  a  little  gift  of 
money  which  they  had  sent  him.  He  expects  to  be  put 
to  death,  sooner  or  later,  perhaps  in  a  very  few  days. 

Do  you  know  what  he  writes  to  his  friends  in  this 
letter?  It  is  one  of  the  most  joyful  letters  anyone  ever 
wrote.  "Rejoice  in  the  Lord  always.  Again  I  say  it, 
Rejoice!"  Then  he  tells  them  what  is  the  greatest 
thing  in  the  world  to  him,  and  the  secret  of  his  happi- 
ness in  spite  of  suffering  and  danger.  It  is  this:  "To 
know  Christ,  and  the  power  of  his  resurrection." 

This  was  the  secret  of  Paul's  happiness  in  spite  of 
suffering,  in  spite  of  imprisonment,  in  spite  of  approach- 


222        THE  LIFE  AND  TIMES  OF  JESUS 

ing  death.    "To  know  Jesus" — this  was  the  most  won- 
derful thing  in  the  world. 

To  know  Jesus  is  still  the  secret  of  true  happiness. 
It  is  still  the  most  wonderful  thing  in  the  world. 

STUDY  TOPICS 

1.  Make  an  outline  of  the  events  of  Thursday,  Friday, 

Saturday,  and  Sunday,  as  told  in  the  last  three 
chapters. 

2.  What  did  the  women  from  Galilee  arrange  to  do  on 

Sunday  morning? 

3.  Describe  the  tomb  in  the  garden.    To  whom  did  it 

belong? 

4.  Give  the  story  of  the  visit  of  the  women  to  the  tomb. 

5.  Where  did  some  of  the  disciples  go  after  Jesus'  cruci- 

fixion ? 

6.  Give  the  story  of  the  Walk  to  Emmaus. 

7.  What  became  of  the  disciples  after  Jesus'  resurrec- 

tion? Where  in  the  Bible  would  you  look  to  find 
something  about  this? 

8.  Jesus  is  our  Master  to-day,  just  as  he  was  in  the  days 

of  his  earthly  life.  Show  how  this  is  true,  how  we 
can  follow  him,  learn  from  his  teaching,  love  and 
obey  and  honor  him  as  did  his  disciples  long  ago  in 
Palestine. 

9.  Explain  what  Saint  Paul  and  the  other  early  Chris- 

tians found  to  be  the  secret  of  true  happiness. 

10.  Turn  to  page  7  and  memorize  the   poem,  How  He 

Came,  by  W.  J.  Dawson. 


Dear  Lord  Jesus,  our  TeacKer  and  Savior,  we 
tKank  tKee  for  thy  coming  to  save  the  w^orld ; 
for  thy  holy  life  of  courage  and  self-sacrifice ; 
for  thy  divine  teaching,  and  for  thy  death  upon 
the  cross. 

Help  us  day  by  day  to  follow  thy  teaching,  to 
do  thy  will  as  faithful  disciples ;  to  be  thought- 
ful and  humble  and  courageous,  gentle  and 
generous  in  thought  and  word  and  deed;  to 
help  others,  and  hasten  the  coming  of  God's 
Kingdom.      Amen. 


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